hROST 

AND       i 

FRIENDSHIP 


GEORGE  FREDERIC  TURNE 


PROM 

Mildred  E.  Youngman 

Kingston 

Musachusetts 


HtJSB  tlBRARY 


Digitized  by  the  Internet  Archive 

in  2007  with  funding  from 

IVIicrosoft  Corporation 


http://www.archive.org/details/frostfriendshipOOturniala 


FROST    AND     FRIENDSHIP 


"  '  Why  should  you  consider  my  interests  at  all  ?  * 

she  inquired."     (Page  96.) 

Frost  and  Friendship]  [Frontispiece 


FROST 
AND    FRIENDSHIP 


BY 

GEORGE    FREDERIC    TURNER. 


5Ilu0tration0  bg  (5.  d.  'TOlUmsburst 


BOSTON : 

LITTLE.     BROWN,     AND     COMPANY, 

1907. 


CONTENTS 

PAGE 

Chapter  I    ........  7 

Chapter  II            .          .          .          .          .          •          •  iS 

Chapter  III 23 

Chapter  IV           .......  37 

Chapter  V            .......  46 

Chapter  VI           .......  65 

Chapter  VII 75 

Chapter  VIII       .         .         .         .  .         •         -99 

Chapter  IX m 

Chapter  X 127 

Chapter  XI 141 

Chapter  XII i53 

Chapter  XIII 164 

Chapter  XIV 176 

Chapter  XV         .......  192 

Chapter  XVI 206 

6 


6  CONTENTS 

PAGB 

Chapter  XVII  ,.,....     216 

Chapter  XVIII 230 

Chapter  XIX  .         .         .         .         .         .         .252 

Chapter  XX  .......     270 

Chapter  XXI  .         .         .         .         .         .         .284 

Chapter  XXII  .         .         .         .         .         .         .     300 

Chapter  XXIII 312 


Frost   and    Friendship. 


CHAPTER    I 

NOVEMBER  is  a  depressing  month.  I  am  not 
thinking  of  fogs.  Personally,  being  an  idle 
man,  I  love  fogs.  Not  only  do  their  subtle  and 
constantly  changing  colours  appeal  to  the  aesthetic 
side  of  my  nature,  but  the  contemplation  of  in- 
numerable fussy  beings  hurrying  in  directions 
diametrically  opposed  to  their  volition  throws  me 
into  a   mild  ecstasy  of  philosophic  amusement. 

No,  with  fogs  I  have  no  quarrel ;  but  I  admit  that 
the  damp  dull  day  that  is  neither  hot  nor  cold, 
foggy  nor  clear,  but  cheerless,  colourless  and  un- 
refreshingly  devoid  of  air,  drives  my  thoughts 
inwards  till  I  become  a  prey  to  a  morbid  and 
unnatural  introspection. 

That  is  why,  on  a  certain  unprepossessing 
November  morning  some  three  years  ago,  I  was 
sitting  down  to  an  excellent  breakfast  of  scrambled 
eggs  and  fried  bacon,  under  the  conviction  that  life, 
so  far  as  I  was  concerned,  was  a  failure  unredeemed 
and  irredeemable.  But  then  I  was  nearly  twenty- 
eight  years  of  age,  and  though  my  health  was  good 
in  its  way,  there  were  things,  pastry  and  pale  ale 


8  FROST    AND    FRIENDSHIP 

for  instance,  which  I  could  no  longer  take  with 
the  impunity  of  my  early  youth. 

Perhaps  I  was  suffering  from  an  excess  of  what 
scripturally-minded  people  call  "  earthly  blessings." 

Money,  the  great  vulgar  root  of  evil  which  most 
of  us  cherish  and  water  so  assiduously  in  our  back 
gardens,  had  blossomed  for  me,  unplanted,  unculti- 
vated and  presumably  undeserved. 

My  father  who,  starting  from  a  humble,  not  to 
say  obscure  origin,  had  ended  by  owning  the  third 
largest  milliner's  shop  in  Oxford  Street,  had  died 
leaving  me  a  quarter  of  a  million  of  his  hard-earned 
gold.  A  similar  sum  would  come  to  me  on  the 
decease  of  my  mother.  My  present  depression 
therefore  could  hardly  be  due  to  a  harassing  diffi- 
culty in  making  both  ends  meet. 

The  grey-haired  little  lady  who  faced  me  from 
the  other  side  of  the  coffee- things  noted  my  dejection. 

"  You  don't  seem  very  lively  this  morning, 
Robert,"  she  remarked. 

"  Do  I  often  seem  very  lively  in  the  morning, 
mother  ?  " 

"  No,"  she  retorted  drily,  "  I  can't  say  you're 
a  very  cheerful  breakfast  companion.  Still,  you 
seem  a  shade  duller  than  usual  this  morning." 

"  I  am  rather  tired  of  life,"  I  said,  as  undramati- 
cally  as  I  could. 

My  mother  thought  fit  to  laugh.  "  Why  don't 
you  marry  ?  "  she  asked. 

"  Because  I  don't  believe  in  violent  remedies," 
I  replied.  "  Besides,  you  know  that  nothing  would 
induce  me  to  leave  you." 


FROST    AND    FRIENDSHIP  9 

"  I  know  nothing  of  the  sort,"  was  the  sharp 
response.  "  You'd  leave  me  to-morrow  if  you  fell 
in  love.  Any  man  would,  and  small  blame  to  him 
either." 

"  I  have  no  intention  of  falling  in  love." 

Again  my  mother  laughed.  "  Has  any  one  ever 
any  intention  of  falling  into  anything  ?  "  she 
asked. 

"  I  mean,"  I  said,  "  that  I  am  no  longer  a  raw 
youth.  I  have  seen  something  of  the  world,  and 
am  weary  of  the  persecutions  of  London  life.  I 
am  rich,  and  Society  matrons  try  and  marry  their 
daughters  to  rich  men.  I  have  the  further  attrac- 
tions of  being  still  under  middle  age  and  not 
dropping  my  h's." 

*'  And  of  being  a  draper's  son,"  added  my  beloved 
parent. 

"  That  does  not  matter,"  I  retorted.  "  Birth 
goes  for  little  nowadays,  and  rightly  so.  Still,  even 
on  that  score  I  can  claim  a  good  descent  on  the 
maternal  side." 

"  You  can  claim  it,"  said  my  mother,  with  her 
scornful  smile,  "  but  your  claim  will  in  all  proba- 
bility be  disallowed.  When  I  married  your  father, 
I  ceased  to  be  a  Dumorion  and  became  a  Saunders. 
Now  '  Saunders '  suggests  silk  petticoats  and 
remnant  days." 

I  did  not  ask  her  how  it  was  she  had  married 
a  man  so  far  her  inferior  socially.  I  had  done  so  on 
a  previous  occasion,  and  the  answer  had  been 
"  because  he  was  a  man."  The  union,  by  the  way, 
had  been  a  love-match  and  a  very  happy  one. 


lo        FROST    AND    FRIENDSHIP 

"  You  are  depressed,"  went  on  my  mother  in  her 
incisive  fashion,  "  you  are  tired  of  hfe,  as  you  call 
it,  and  generally  an  insufferable  companion,  because 
you  are  afflicted  acutely  with  that  prevalent  and 
distressing  complaint,  conceit.  Because  you  are 
wealthy,  you  fancy  that  every  mother  you  meet  has 
some  snub-nosed  offspring  in  the  background  whom 
she  will  endeavour  to  palm  off  on  you  on  the  first 
opportunity.  Because  you  played  m  the  Eton  eleven 
and  subsequently  made  56  not  out  for  Cam- 
bridge against  Oxford,  you  fancy  that  your  name 
is  a  household  word  with  the  sporting  public ; 
whereas  they  have  long  forgotten  the  little  they 
ever  knew  about  you.  You  fancy  because  your 
father  was  a  man  of  exceptional  energy,  that  you 
inherit  his  vigour  together  with  the  brains  and 
beauty  of  your  mother — ^which  is  a  delusion." 

"  You  are  very  refreshing,  dearest,"  I  replied. 
"  It  is  quite  possible  that  you  are  right,  and  that  I 
have  not  inherited  the  virtues  of  my  forbears,  but 
merely  their  conceit.  And  yet,  when  I  say  that  I 
am  tired  of  life,  I  do  not  mean  that  I  am  tired  of 
contemplating  my  own  perfections.  Merely  that 
dances  bore  me,  men  bore  me,  women — well,  women 
who,  according  to  books  should  be  angels  or  devil- 
esses,  are  neither,  but  just  women  and  the  greatest 
bore  of  aU." 

"  But  business " 

"  Business  I  respect — from  a  distance.  My  sub- 
ordinates are  so  thoroughly  conscientious,  so  un- 
fiaggingly  energetic,  so  infinitely  superior  to  myself 
in  all  the  qualities    which    make    for    commercial 


FROST    AND    FRIENDSHIP         ii 

success,  that  I  feel  it  would  be  detrimental  to  British 
trade  in  general,  and  to  the  firm  of  James  Saunders 
and  Son  in  particular,  to  make  my  nominal  position 
as  head  of  the  business  a  real  one." 

My  mother  sighed,  rose  from  the  table  and  ap- 
proached the  sideboard  where  the  daily  papers  and 
the  morning's  correspondence  were  reposing  in 
dignified  proximity  to  an  uncut  ham. 

"  It's  a  pity  you're  a  failure,  Robert,"  she  said, 
"for  I  rather  like  you.  At  times  you  talk  just 
like  your  mother.  There,"  she  added,  as  I  inter- 
rupted her  remarks  with  a  kiss,  "  take  your  letters, 
foolish  boy,  and  try  and  find  something  in  them  to 
cheer  your  downcast  spirit." 

The  first  few  envelopes  I  opened  contained  little 
of  a  cheering  nature.  A  big  bill  for  cigars,  a  couple 
of  dance  invitations,  several  epistles  of  a  begging 
nature,  and — most  deadly  of  all — an  invitation  to 
a  Bridge-tea.  The  most  interesting  looking  com- 
munication I  kept  till  last.  It  bore  a  foreign  stamp, 
the  envelope  was  enormous,  and  the  address  written 
in  a  neat,  but  ridiculously  minute  hand.  On  the  back 
was  a  gorgeous  coat  of  arms,  and  forgetful  of  the 
stamp,  I  began  to  have  horrible  visions  of  a  half-past- 
six-dinner  at  a  City  company. 

"  Well,"  said  my  mother,  as  an  exclamation  of 
surprise  forced  itself  to  my  lips,  "  What  is  it  ?  " 

"  An  invitation  from  a  King,"  I  replied,  with  un- 
natural calmness. 

"  From  a  king  !    From  what  king  ?  " 

"  His  Majesty  King  Karl  XXII  of  Grimland." 

"  That's  the  man  you  were  introduced  to  after 


12        FROST    AND    FRIENDSHIP 

the  tennis  tournament  at  Weidenbruck  last  year, 
isn't  it  ?  " 

"  It  is,"  I  answered  ;  *'  I  thought  he  had  taken 
a  fancy  to  me.  As  a  winner  I  was  invited  to  dine 
at  the  Palace,  and  his  manner  at  the  conclusion  of 
that  festive  meal  was  most  gracious.  I  put  it  down 
to  royal  affability  tinged  with  Pommery  and  Greno  ; 
but  it  appears  it  was  something  more.  He  has 
asked  me  to  stay  a  month  or  six  weeks  at  Weissheim." 

"  At  Weissheim  ?  " 

"Yes,  at  Weissheim,  a  small  town  some  thirty  miles 
south-east  of  Weidenbruck,  where  His  Majesty  has 
a  winter  palace." 

"  And  you  will  accept  the  invitation  ?  " 

"  Naturally,"  I  replied. 

*'  Your  scruples  about  leaving  your  dear  mother 
notwithstanding  ?  " 

"  Six  weeks  is  not  a  lifetime,"  I  retorted,  "  and 
if  you  wish  it  you  can  come  too.  The  Pariserhof 
is,  I  am  told,  an  excellent  hotel. 

"  Thank  you,"  replied  my  mother  coolly ;  "  I 
prefer   South   Kensington." 

"  As  you  will,"  I  said.  "  Personally  I  shall  be 
delighted  to  leave  London  for  a  space." 

For  several  minutes  there  was  sUence,  during 
which  I  re-read  the  royal  epistle  which  had  so  trans- 
formed the  dreary  outlook  of  my  thoughts. 

"  Dear  Mr.  Saunders,"  it  ran, 

"It  would  give  us  much  pleasure  if  you  could 
come  and  stay  with  us  at  the  Brun-varad  this  winter. 
Weissheim  is  no  longer  merely  a  summer  resort,  for 


I  FROST   AND    FRIENDSHIP         13 

the  winter  season,  which  lasts  from  the  beginning  of 
November  to  the  end  of  February,  is  a  very  festive 
and  busy  time.  Weissheim,  as  you  probably  know 
is  some  six  thousand  odd  feet  above  sea  level,  but 
the  cold  is  of  such  a  dry  character  and  the  sunshine 
so  continuous  and  brilliant,  that  ,to  my  mind  the 
winter  is  the  time,  par  excellence,  to  enjoy  its  charms. 
I  myself  prefer  it  at  aU  times  to  Weidenbruck,  which, 
like  most  capitals,  suffers  from  the  noise  and  dis- 
quietude inevitably  engendered  by  an  excess  of 
trams  and  politicians.  I  should  suggest  your 
coming  at  the  beginning  of  January,  and  staying  at 
least  a  month — six  weeks  if  you  can  manage  it.  I 
fear  I  shall  not  be  able  to  take  my  revenge  on 
you  at  lawn  tennis,  but  we  have  a  great  variety  of 
winter  sports  which  are  most  fascinating. 

"  Karl  R." 

Decidedly  and  on  all  grounds  the  invitation  was 
one  worthy  of  acceptance.  Winter  sports !  Dry 
cold  and  a  brilliant  sun  !  The  guest  of  royalty  in  a 
royal  palace  !  Assuredly  life  was  not  the  appallingly 
dull  affair  it  had  seemed  a  quarter  of  an  hour  before. 
My  mother  interrupted  my  rapturous  meditations. 

"  Robert,  dear,"  she  said  "  I  am  surprised  at 
your  being  so  eager  to  leave  London  just  now.  I 
fancied  you  had  taken  a  liking  to  that  Blackwood 
girl.  You  danced  twice  with  her  the  other  night 
at  Lady  Fitz- Archibald's." 

It  was  my  turn  to  laugh  now.  "  To  dance  two 
dances,"  I  remarked,  "  out  of  a  possible  twenty- 
three  with  the  same  female,  does  not  constitute 


14        FROST   AND    FRIENDSHIP 

an  engagement  in  this  country.  It  does  not  even 
argue  a  strong  natural  affinity.  Agatha  Blackwood 
is  a  pretty  girl  with  the  soul  of  a  butterfly.  The 
type  is  one  that  pleases  the  eye  and  the  eye  alone. 
When,  oh  when,  will  mother  and  matchmaker  cease 
to  be  convertible  terms  ?  " 

"  When  mothers  cease  to  have  sons  and  daughters," 
was  the  swift  reply.  Doubtless  also  it  was  a  truth- 
ful one. 


CHAPTER   II 

EVERY  board-school  pupil  knows  where  Grim- 
land  is.  For  those  who  have  not  had  the 
advantage  of  a  state-aided  education,  I  may  as 
well  say  that  it  lies  in  a  triangle  between  Germany, 
Austria  and  Russia,  and  that  it  takes  forty-eight 
solid  and  continuous  hours  of  travelling  to  get  there. 
Personally  I  am  fond  of  travelling,  and  enjoy  sufficient 
immunity  from  sea-sickness  and  train  weariness  to 
claim  with  justice  the  designation  of  "  a  good 
traveller." 

And  yet,  when  a  consultation  with  my  watch 
disclosed  the  fact  that  I  had  but  one  little  hour 
more  to  spend  in  my  over-heated  compartment,  a 
feeling  of  vast  relief  spread  over  me,  I  stretched  my 
lethargic  limbs  to  their  full  extent,  and  gave  vent 
to  a  prolonged  and  highly  musical  yawn.  Then  I 
looked  out  of  the  window.  It  was  pitch  dark  and 
had  been  so  for  over  an  hour  ;  and  yet  I  knew  that 
I  was  travelling  through  some  of  the  loveliest  scenery, 
and  over  one  of  the  most  wonderfully  engineered 
lines  in  Europe.  I  yawned  again,  and  this  time 
my  ears  seemed  to  crack,  for  we  had  been  coming 
up  hill  steadily  for  some  little  time  and  the  reduced 
pressure  was  plajmig  pranks  with  my  tympana. 
Then  as  our  funny  little  moimtain  engine  ceased 


i6        FROST   AND    FRIENDSHIP 

its  tugging  labours  and  stopped  at  Riefinsdorf,  the 
terminus,  I  collected  my  "  handgepack "  and  a 
couple  of  Tauchnitz  volumes  and  descended  on  to 
the  platform.  It  was  amazingly  cold  after  the 
stuffy  atmosphere  of  the  train,  and  I  felt  grateful 
for  my  thick  ulster  which  I  had  abused  so  unspar- 
ingly at  various  points  of  my  journey. 

My  train  disgorged  a  goodly  number  of  fellow 
travellers,  and  the  little  Riefinsdorf  platform  was 
speedily  crowded  with  well-wrapped  mortals  search- 
ing for  luggage  and  chartering  vehicbs  to  convey 
them  to  Weissheim.  I  was  wondering  just  what  to 
do,  when  a  man  in  a  beautiful  fur  coat  and  a  gold- 
laced  cap  came  up  and  saluted  me. 

"  Mr.  Saunders  ?  "  he  inquired.  I  replied  in  the 
affirmative. 

"  Kindly  give  me  your  luggage  ticket." 

I  complied,  and  my  imposing  friend  passed  on  the 
piece  of  yellow  paper  to  a  subordinate. 

"  Follow  me,  sir." 

Again  I  did  as  I  was  bid,  and  a  moment  later 
the  emblazoned  door  of  a  carriage  and  pair  was 
thrown  open  for  me.  I  entered,  a  rug  was  placed 
over  my  knees,  a  whip  cracked,  and  I  had  started 
for  the  Brun-varad,  the  winter  palace  of  the  King 
of  Grimland. 

So  ignorant  was  I  of  winter  travelling  in  cold 
countries  that  it  was  several  minutes  before  I  realised 
that  my  conveyance  was  progressing  on  runners 
and  not  on  wheels.  Onward  we  swung  and  lurched 
into  the  darkness,  for  all  I  knew  at  the  edge  of  some 
appalling  precipice,  and  apparently  at  a  great  rate 


FROST    AND    FRIENDSHIP         17 

of  speed.  There  was  something  extremely  fas- 
cinating in  this,  drive  through  an  unknown  country, 
with  its  outlook  of  utter  blackness  and  its  hazily 
imagined  termination  at  the  fabled  Brun-varad. 

Why,  I  wondered,  had  King  Karl  invited  me. 
Was  it  for  the  sake  of  my  "  beaux  yeaux,"  or  did  he 
know  I  was  wealthy  and  want  to  borrow  money  of 
me  ?  I  had  heard  of  kings  doing  such  things  ; 
but  as  the  remembrance  of  my  big,  good-natured, 
sport-loving  host  came  back  to  me,  the  theory  of  the 
"  beaux  yeaux  "  seemed  the  most  plausible.  "  The 
'  ayes  '  have  it,"  I  murmured  modestly  to  myself, 
*'  and  after  all  a  monarch  might  easily  have  a  less 
interesting  and  presentable  guest  than  my  humble 
self." 

A  blaze  of  light  shining  suddenly  through  my 
carriage  window  interrupted  my  meditationls.  It 
proceeded  from  a  vast  building  with  many  rows  of 
illuminated  windows.  Then  as  my  eyes  caught 
the  gilded  inscription  "  Pariserhof,"  I  realized  that 
the  objective  of  my  journey  had  not  yet  been 
reached.  We  passed  now  through  a  fairly  wide 
street  lined  with  shops  and  hostelries,  and  lighted 
with  electric  arc  lamps.  The  shops,  indeed,  were  all 
shut  and  but  a  few  muffled  forms  were  visible  in 
the  snow-carpeted  thoroughfare,  but  the  place 
nevertheless  wore  an  air  of  comfortable  and  up  to 
date  prosperity.  Unquestionably  this  was  Weiss- 
heim,  and  the  size  of  the  town  was  greater  than  I 
had  supposed.  We  passed  a  handsome  Catholic 
church  with  a  snow  encrusted  dome  ;  a  big  square 
building  with  a  couple  of  old  mortars  set  before  the 


i8        FROST    AND    FRIENDSHIP 

arched  doorway  and  a  general  impress  of  military 
occupation  ;  we  skirted  a  large  open  space,  with 
what  looked  like  a  town  hall  on  one  side  of  it  and 
a  theatre  on  the  other.  With  its  setting  of  snow, 
its  absence  of  visible  life,  its  intense  silence,  the 
place  esemed  vaguely  unreal,  a  scene  painting  rather 
than  a  habitable  town,  a  dream  city  rather  than  a 
man-created  bulwark  against  the  still  intense  cold 
of  that  superlatively  frigid  region. 

Then  we  plunged  into  the  darkness  again,  and  it 
was  fully  ten  minutes  before  we  halted  at  what  I 
made  no  doubt  was  the  Brun-varad,  the  ancestral 
home  of  Grimland's  monarchy. 

I  had  a  vision  of  a  great  sentinelled  gateway  of 
which  the  posts  bore  huge  fantastic  balls  of  snow  ; 
then,  as  we  drove  up  the  white  sweep  of  the  approach, 
of  a  high  roofed  tower  with  a  great  Gothic  archway 
at  its  base.  Beyond,  a  huge  flank  of  window- 
pierced  wall,  a  precipice  of  rough-hewn  stones 
corniced  with  great  dependent  icicles  and  crowned 
with  a  tiled  roof  of  so  steep  a  pitch  that  the  snow 
found  little  or  no  lodgment  on  it,  save  where  the 
dormer  windows  broke  its  steep  inchne.  The 
building  was  grim,  indefinite,  mediaeval,  and  my 
first  impression  of  it,  seen  in  the  warm  half-light 
of  its  own  illuminated  windows  and  with  its  setting 
of  deep  immaculate  snow,  was  of  a  fairy  castle  fresh 
from  the  pages  of  Hans  Andersen. 

We  did  not  pull  up  at  the  great  archway,  but 
drove  round  to  a  smaller  entrance  at  the  side.  As  we 
stopped,  my  fur-coated  fiiend  with  the  gold-rimmed 
cap  appeared  once  more,  presumably  from  the  box- 


FROST   AND    FRIENDSHIP        19 

seat  of  my  conveyance,  and  rang  a  beU.  The  doors 
of  the  palace  were  thrown  open,  and  stepping  out 
of  the  royal  sleigh  with  a  delightful  and  totally 
unaccustomed  feeling  of  nervousness,  I  entered 
the  habitation  of  my  exalted  host.  An  individual 
in  a  black  morning-coat  approached — bald,  digni- 
fied, amply- whiskered,  gently  supercilious.  Behind, 
around,  flunkeys  in  green  and  golden  coats,  red 
plush  knickerbockers,  white  stockings  and  powdered 
hair.  Like  most  of  my  countrymen  when  feeling 
slightly  overwhelmed,   I  smiled. 

The  black-coated  gentleman  bowed. 

*'  I  trust  you  have  had  a  pleasant  journey,  Mr. 
Saunders,"  he  said  in  faultless  English. 

"  Quite,  thank  you,"  I  replied. 

*'  His  Majesty  is  in  the  billiard  room,"  pursued 
my  stately  welcomer.  "  He  will  be  pleased  to  see 
you  at  once,  if  you  will  divest  yourself  of  your 
overcoat." 

A  couple  of  stalwart  flunkeys  succeeded  in  remov- 
ing my  superfluous  attire  and  I  followed  the  bene- 
volent chef-de-reception  down  a  long  corridor.  Every- 
where groined  ceilings,  panelled  walls,  and  electric 
lights  in  the  most  modem  fittings  ! 

The  whiskered  dignity  opened  the  billiard-room 
door.  His  Majesty  King  Karl  XXII  of  Grimland 
was  in  the  middle  of  his  stroke  ;  he  was  trying  to 
pot  his  adversary.  We  waited  breathlessly  and  in 
silence.  At  the  consiunmation — an  unsuccessful  one, 
for  the  white  ball,  after  wobbling  uncertainly  in  the 
jaws  of  the  pocket,  remained  provokingly  in  view — 
his  Majesty  looked  up  and  saw  us. 


20        FROST   AND    FRIENDSHIP 

"  Hullo,  Saunders !  "  he  cried,  leaning  his  cue 
against  the  table  whence  it  slithered  noisily  to  the 
floor,  "  My  dear  fellow,  I'm  delighted  to  see  you," 
and  smiling  all  over  his  swarthy  good-natured  face 
he  shook  me  warmly  by  the  hand. 

"  I  trust  your  Majesty  is  in  the  enjoyment  of 
good  health,"  I  remarked  formally. 

"  I  always  enjoy  good  health,  thank  you,"  he 
answered,  "and  never  better  than  here  in  the  dear 
old  Brun-varad.  But  permit  me  to  present  you 
to  the  company.  This  young  lady,  my  opponent 
at  billiards  and  invariable  vanquisher,  is  a  fellow 
countr3rwoman  of  yours.  Miss  Anchester.  Miss 
Anchester — Mr.  Saunders."  Here  I  received  a  bow 
from  a  slim  fair-haired  young  woman  with  a  singu- 
larly fresh  complexion  and  a  pair  of  cool  grey 
unemotional  eyes.  "  The  other  young  lady,"  went 
on  the  King,  indicating  a  dark  and  distinctly  pretty 
girl  who  was  sitting  on  a  high  leather  seat  between  a 
small  boy  in  a  sailor  suit  and  a  somewhat  smaller 
gill  in  white,  "  the  young  lady  who  is  trying,  fairly 
successfully,  to  keep  my  imruly  progeny  in  order, 
is  Her  Royal  Highness  the  Prinzessin  Mathilde  von 
Schattenberg,  daughter  of  my  cousin,  the  Grand  Duke 
Fritz.  The  gentleman  who  is  so  kindly  acting  as 
scorer,  is  my  commander-in-chief,  General  Meyer. 
General  Meyer — Mr.  Saunders." 

A  tall,  stooping-shouldered  individual  bowed 
humorously — if  a  bow  can  be  humorous — towards 
me.  He  was  rather  past  middle  age,  of  unmistak- 
ably Jewish  origin,  and  his  features  displayed  a  mix- 
ture of  cleverness,  lazy  good  humour,  and  cynicism. 


FROST   AND    FRIENDSHIP        21 

"  Now  you  know  everybody,"  concluded  the  King, 

"  With  the  exception  of  the  unruly  progeny," 
I  corrected. 

"  Ah,  permit  me.  This  is  his  Royal  Highness 
the  Duke  of  Weissheim,  heir  apparent  to  the  throne 
and  prospective  twenty-tliird  Karl  of  Grimland." 
Here  I  received  a  small  and  sticky  palm  which  I 
shook  gravely,  "  and  this  is  her  Royal  Highness 
the  Princess  Wilhelmina,"  and  at  these  words,  and 
much  to  my  astonishment,  a  pair  of  tiny  arms  were 
thrown  round  my  neck  and  I  received  a  warm  and 
somewhat  embarrassing  salutation.  Every  one 
laughed,  and  I  was  just  beginning  to  feel  comfortable 
again,  when  of  a  sudden,  silence  fell  upon  the  com- 
pany. Looking  up  I  saw  the  reason.  Her  Majesty 
the  Queen  had  entered.  She  was  a  little  woman, 
stately,  imperious,  almost  beautiful,  but  with  bad 
temper  written  in  every  line  of  her  hard  unfeeling 
countenance.  Her  thin  red  lips  were  pressed  tightly 
together,  her  big  dark  eyes  flashed  angrily  from  her 
pale  face,  and  it  was  obvious  that  she  had  seen  the 
embrace  and  thoroughly  disapproved  of  it. 

"  Miss  Anchester,"  she  said  coldly,  "  will  you 
please  conduct  the  children  to  the  nursery.  It  is 
quite  time  they  went  to  bed." 

Then  turning  her  gaze  to  me,  whom  she  had  met 
before,  she  stretched  out  her  hand  without  a  word. 
Taking  it  in  the  tips  of  my  fingers  I  bent  low  over 
it  and  touched  it  ceremoniously  with  my  lips. 

"  Karl,"  continued  her  Majesty,  in  her  unplea- 
sant tones,  "  it  is  quite  time  you  went  and  dressed 
for  dinner,"  and  with  that  she  followed  Miss  An- 


22        FROST   AND    FRIENDSHIP 

Chester  who  was  conveying  the  children  from  the 
room,  and  left  us.  The  sense  of  relief  was  palpable 
and  immediate.  King  Karl  turned  to  us  with  a 
comical  shrug  of  his  big  shoulders,  and  the  humor- 
ous hues  on  General  Meyer's  face  deepened  to  a 
positive  grin.  The  Princess  Mathilde  tittered  audibly, 
and  then  as  I  turned  to  her,  involuntarily  smiling 
in  turn,  she  burst  into  a  peal  of  laughter,  free, 
musical,  and  refreshingly  unrestrained. 

"  We  all  have  a  fly  in  our  ointment,"  said  the  King 
with  a  gesture,  "  my  ointment  is  the  Brun-varad." 

"  His  Majesty  does  not  specify  his  fly,"  com- 
mented the  general  drily." 

"  It's  scarcely  necessary,"  retorted  the  monarch. 
"  Come,  Saunders,  it  is  time  to  dress  for  dinner. 
La  reine  le  veuU.  Our  major-domo,  Herr  Bomcke, 
will  show  you  to  your  room.  And  remember,  at 
the  Brun-varad  we  reduce  ceremony  to  as  near 
the  vanishing  point  as  possible." 


CHAPTER   III 

MY  first  dinner  at  the  Brun-varad  was  quite 
a  small  affair.  To  be  exact  we  sat  down 
eight,  and  we  dined  in  a  small  room  in  the 
Waffenthurm,  the  great  tower  I  had  noticed 
on  my  arrival.  The  apartment  was  panelled  from 
floor  to  celling  in  age-darkened  pine,  while  the 
ceiling  itself  was  inlaid  with  a  fine  design  of  vari- 
ously coloured  woods.  Trophies  of  spears  and 
ancient  muskets  adorned  the  walls.  A  huge  boar's 
head  grinned  wickedly  at  us  from  above  the  high 
stone  mantelpiece,  and  in  each  comer  of  the  room  a 
small  stuffed  bear  supported  an  electric  lamp. 

The  table  at  which  we  sat  was  circular  in  shape, 
and  devoid  of  any  covering.  It  was  of  dark,  slightly 
polished  oak,  showing  off  to  advantage  the  fine  old 
silver  and  beautiful  glass  which  garnished  our  meal. 
In  the  middle  was  a  handsome  gilt  centrepiece  from 
which  there  stretched  to  the  ceiling  a  string  of  arti- 
ficial wax  flowers. 

There  were  two  individuals  present  whom  I  had 
not  yet  been  introduced  to.  One  was  the  Queen's 
companion  and  principal  maid-of-honour,  Fraulein 
von  Helder,  a  young  woman  of  about  four  and 
twenty,  with  a  fat,  pale,  unprepossessing  counten- 


24        FROST   AND    FRIENDSHIP 

ance,  and  small  pig-like  eyes.  The  other  was  a 
short  broad-shouldered  person  with  a  tremendously 
thick  head  of  hair  and  a  bushy  beard  and  moustache 
of  coal-black  hue.  He  was  the  Grossherzog  Fritz, 
the  Princess'  father.  His  evening  dress  fitted  him 
abominably  and  he  looked  like  a  picturesque  gar- 
dener. 

"  I  hope  you  will  like  Weissheim,  Mr.  Saunders," 
said  Her  Majesty,  whom  I  was  privileged  to  sit  next 
to,  in  the  most  cordial  tones  she  could  command. 
In  her  evening  attire  and  by  the  artificial  light 
she  looked  positively  handsome.  Her  face  indeed 
was  pale,  but  the  pallor  was  translucent  and  not 
opaque,  and  her  features  were  clear-cut  and  dis- 
tinctly well  proportioned.  She  had  a  splendid 
head  of  gleaming  bronze  hair,  her  lips  were  red — 
perhaps  I  should  say  reddened — and  she  wore  a 
profusion  of  jewels  both  on  her  shapely  neck  and  on 
her  vivid  green  gown.  She  was  not  perhaps  the 
most  ladylike  figure  in  the  world,  but  in  her  way  she 
was  undeniably  striking. 

*'  I  feel  sure  I  shall  like  Weissheim,  your  Majesty," 
I  replied,  "  I  have  quite  made  up  my  mind  on  that 
point." 

"  One  can  persuade  oneself  to  like  most  things," 
she  retorted  ;  "  but  I  have  never  yet  succeeded  in 
liking  Weissheim — not  in  winter  that  is  to  say.  In 
the  summer  it  is  tolerable,  but  at  this  time  of  year 
I  prefer  Cannes." 

"  I  have  a  weakness  for  clean  snow,"  I  said ; 
*•  you  see  I  am  a  Londoner." 

"Then  you  can  indulge  your  weakness  to  the 


FROST    AND    FRIENDSHIP        25 

full,"  said  General  Meyer ;  "  snow  is  plentiful  at 
Weissheim." 

"It  is  five  or  six  feet  deep  aU  over  the  fields," 
said  the  King,  "  and  up  on  the  mountains  as  much 
as  twenty  or  thirty." 

General  Meyer  had  sneered  at  the  snow  as  if  it 
were  something  to  be  ashamed  of.  King  Karl,  on 
the  contrary,  was  evidently  proud  of  it. 

"  By  the  way,  Saunders,"  continued  His  Majesty  ; 
"  are  you  any  good  at  winter  sports  ?  " 

"  I  don't  know,"  I  replied  ;  "  I  have  never  tried 
my  hand  at  them." 

"  Then  you  are  hardly  likely  to  be  good  at 
them." 

It  was  Miss  Anchester  who  made  this  somewhat 
caustic  remark.  I  was  annoyed,  because  if  there  is 
one  thing  I  pride  myself  upon,  it  is  my  facility  for 
games  and  pastimes,  and  I  had  no  doubt  that  with 
a  little  practice  I  should  equal,  and  very  possibly 
excel,  the  regular  habitues  of  the  place. 

Besides,  Miss  Anchester  was  a  governess — I  had 
discovered  that — and  governesses,  even  in  a  Royal 
household,  are  supposed  to  make  themselves  agree- 
able. 

"  Do  winter  sports  require  any  special  quali- 
fications more  than  summer  pastimes  ?  "  I  enquired 
with  extreme  politeness. 

"  They  require  a  good  deal  of  nerve." 

I  opened  my  eyes  wide  at  this  retort,  insinuating 
as  it  did  that  I  might  conceivably  be  lacking  in 
courage.  Miss  Anchester  dropped  her  eyes  before 
mine  and  plunged  into  a  conversation  with  the 


26        FROST   AND    FRIENDSHIP 

Grand  Duke  Fritz.  She  was  certainly  a  very  nice- 
looking  girl  in  a  cool  English  way.  Her  fair  hair  was 
bright,  abundant,  and  simply  done.  Her  features 
were  regular,  almost  classic,  absolutely  calm,  and 
her  neck  and  arms  had  the  roundness  and  suppleness 
of  a  more  than  ordinarily  vigorous  young  woman- 
hood. Her  white  evening  dress  was  simplicity — 
severity  itself ;  and  in  this,  as  in  every  other  way, 
she  was  as  perfect  a  foil  to  the  Queen  as  a  lover  of 
contrasts  could  desire. 

On  physical  grounds  I  was  disposed  to  approve 
of  her,  and  it  seemed  a  pity  she  should  be  so  dis- 
agreeable. Had  she  been  otherwise  I  should  cer- 
tainly have  taken  the  trouble  to  make  myself  enter- 
taining to  her.  I  turned  to  the  Prinzessin  who  sat 
on  my  left. 

"  Do  you  like  winter  sports,  Princess  ?  "  I  asked. 
"  I  love  them,"  was  the  enthusiastic  response. 
*'  And  have  you  plenty  of  nerve  ?  "  I  pursued 
sarcastically. 
She  laughed. 

"  Any  amount,"   was   the   whole-hearted   reply. 
"  Unfortunately,  my  father  won't  let  me  go  down  the 
Kastel  run." 
"  The  Kastel  run  ?  " 

"  Yes,  the  great  toboggan  run  which  starts  near 
our  home,  the  Marienkastel,  and  finishes  close  by 
the  palace  here." 

"  You  must  try  that  some  day,"  put  in  the  King. 
*'  It's  magnificent.     Some  of  these  fellows  attain  a 
maximum  speed  of  nearly  seventy  miles  an  hour.'* 
"  I  will  try  to-morrow." 


FROST    AND    FRIENDSHIP         27 

"  Have  you  ever  done  any  tobogganning  ? " 
inquired  Miss  Anchester. 

"  A  little,"  I  replied,  recalling  some  experiences  of 
my  early  boyhood  "  on  tea-trays."  The  gover- 
ness' feelings  were  expressed  by  a  slight  but  highly 
contemptuous  smile. 

"  I  would  not  advise  you  to  go  down  the  Kastel 
run  to-morrow,"  she  remarked  drily. 

"  You  fear  my  nerves  would  not  prove  equal  to 
the  occasion  ?  " 

"  I  fear  your  bones  might  not.  It  is  only  experi- 
enced tobogganners  who  go  down  the  Kastel  run. 
The  Thai  run  is  quite  difficult,  and  quite  danger- 
ous enough  for  beginners.  Then  there  is  the 
Children's  run  behind  the  Pariserhof,  which  is  quite 
easy.  I  should  certainly  advise  you  to  start  on  the 
children's  run." 

"  It  sounds  rather  humiliating,"  I  protested. 

"  It  is  far  more  humiliating  than  it  sounds,"  was 
the  quick  retort.  "Tobogganning  may  be  classed 
as  a  dangerous  sport.  It  is  frequently  fatal^ — to 
one's  dignity." 

*'  And  do  you  toboggan  ?  "  I  asked,  considerably 
piqued. 

"  Does  Miss  Anchester  toboggan  !  "  broke  in  the 
King.  "  Why  she  goes  down  the  Kastel  run  every 
day  of  the  winter  season  except  Sundays.  She 
won  the  Grimland  Derby  last  year  in  record  time — 
2  minutes,  29;|-  seconds." 

I  had  never  heard  of  the  Grimland  Derby  in  my 
life  :  but  it  was  doubtless  considered  a  very  import- 
ant event  in  these  parts,  and  her  extraordinary 


28        FROST   AND   FRIENDSHIP 

success  accounted  no  doubt  for  the  governess' 
supercilious  tone  towards  a  novice  like  myself. 
Nevertheless,  as  the  King  mentioned  her  achieve- 
ment, her  eyes  fixed  themselves  on  the  centre  of  her 
plate,  while  a  rosy  blush  over-spread  her  smooth 
and  shapely  cheek. 

On  the  whole  it  was  rather  an  amusing  dinner. 
The  chief  talkers  were  the  King  who  had  a  wonderful 
flow  of  spirits,  and  the  Prinzessin,  who  seemed  to 
regard  life  as  a  series  of  huge  jokes.  She  was  quite 
young — barely  twenty  I  should  have  said — and  I 
was  forced  to  admit  that  my  original  verdict  of 
"  very  pretty  "  had  done  her  a  considerable  injustice. 
Her  features  were  more  than  merely  piquant,  they 
were  beautiful  and  delicately  modelled.  Ruddy  as  a 
berry,  her  complexion  was  clear  and  triemendously 
healthy,  while  her  little  black  eyes  were  bright  as 
beads,  and  laughed  as  gaily  as  her  dainty  lips.  She 
was  small,  vivacious,  enthusiastic,  and  alarmingly 
alive  to  the  humorous  side  of  things.  She  would 
have  cheered  up  the  veriest  dullard  on  earth,  and  I, 
who  have  a  fair  capacity  for  badinage,  contrived 
to  tickle  her  sense  of  humour  almost  beyond  the 
bounds  of  social  decorum. 

The  Queen  talked  little,  and  what  she  said  failed 
to  add  to  the  gaiety  of  the  company,  while  the 
Fraulein  von  Helder  seemed  to  care  more  for  assuag- 
ing her  enormous  appetite  than  the  refined  pleasures 
of  conversation.  As  for  the  Grand  Duke,  he  helped 
the  flow  in  a  spasmodic  and  perfunctory  way,  but 
his  thoughts  seemed  to  be  elsewhere  and  his  utter- 
ances insincere.    To  the  student  of  human  nature 


FROST    AND    FRIENDSHIP     -    29 

there  was  much  food  for  study,  but  to  my  thinking 
the  most  interesting  of  the  company  was  the  com- 
mander-in-chief, General  Meyer.  For  the  most  part 
he  remained  silent,  listening  and  smiling  like  some 
humorous  old  sphinx,  who,  while  despising  mankind, 
could  not  help  being  amused  by  it.  Occasionally 
he  would  put  his  eye-glass  into  his  right  eye,  lean 
forward  and  deliver  himself  elaborately  of  some 
epigrammatic  cynicism  ;  and  then  he  would  sip  his 
wine  and  lean  back  again  with  a  contented  smile 
apparently  well  satisfied  with  his  effort. 

After  dessert  her  Majesty  and  the  three  young 
ladies  left  us.  Coffee  was  brought,  and  the  atten- 
dants having  withdrawn,  we  four  men  were  left  to 
ourselves.  The  King,  who  disliked  nothing  so  much 
as  having  everything  done  for  him,  rose  and  unlocked 
a  cupboard,  producing  a  box  of  cigars. 

"  Have  a  priceless  Havannah,  Saunders  ?  "  he 
asked.  "  Take  care  not  to  drop  it,"  he  added,  as  I 
helped  myself. 

"  Why  not,  sire  ?  "   I  enquired. 

"  Because  it  will  go  into  powder  if  you  do.  The 
air  here  is  so  extraordinarily  dry  that  it  is  absolutely 
impossible  to  keep  tobacco  in  good  condition.  Or 
one's  hair  either,"  he  added  passing  his  fingers 
through  his  thick  upstanding  locks. 

"  Yes,"  remarked  General  Meyer,  making  a  wry 
face,  "  everything  is  extraordinarily  dry  here,  especi- 
ally the  champagne." 

"  And  your  wit,"  added  his  Majesty. 

"  By  the  way,  cousin,"  asked  the  Grand  Duke, 
"  have  you  had  any  more  threatening  letters  lately  ?" 


30        FROST   AND    FRIENDSHIP 

"  No,"  replied  the  King,  "  and  their  unwonted 
absence  is  making  me  positively  nervous.  It's  a 
strange  thing  being  a  king,  Saunders,"  he  went  on 
to  me.  "  Here  am  I,  a  benevolent  monarch  devoted 
to  my  people,  a  model  husband,  and  a  slave  to  affairs 
of  state,  and  yet  there  is  a  party,  a  fairly  large  party, 
who  if  they  were  strong  enough,  or  cunning  enough, 
would  drive  me  headlong  from  my  place." 

"  It  is  incomprehensible,"  muttered  the  Grand 
Duke  into  his  bushy  beard. 

"  Your  Majesty's  army  is  loyal  to  the  last  man," 
sneered  the  General. 

"  And  their  chief  is  a  man  of  immense  energy," 
said  the  King  drily,  with  a  side  glance  at  the  last 
speaker,  who  was  leaning  back  smoking  in  his  seat, 
one  arm  thrown  over  the  back  of  a  chair,  and  his  long 
legs  stretched  out  reposefuUy  in  front  of  him. 

"  A  man  of  immense  mental  energy,"  affirmed 
the  commander-in-chief,  blowing  out  a  cloud  of  blue 
smoke.  "  Besides,"  he  added  slowly,  "  the  ranks 
of  loyalty  have  been  lately  strengthened  by  the 
advent  of  a  distinguished  stranger  from  England," 
and  he  waved  his  hand  airily  in  my  direction. 

"  I'd  sooner  have  Saunders  beside  me  in  a  tight 
place  than  some  of  your  marvellously  loyal  officers," 
said  the  King.  I  had  yet  to  learn  that  my  royal 
host  was  the  most  apparently  indiscreet  and  out- 
spoken man  in  his  kingdom.  All  the  same,  the  strange 
half -serious  compliment  pleased  me.  It  even  thrilled 
me.  I  felt  that  if  ever  I  were  called  upon  to  stand 
between  the  King  of  Grimland  and  danger  I  would 
remember  those  idle  words  and  prove  their  truth. 


FROST    AND    FRIENDSHIP        31 

"Your  Majesty  should  not  cast  reflections  upon 
your  army,"  said  the  Grand  Duke,  rising  and 
brushing  some  cigar-ash  off  his  untidy  dress- 
clothes. 

"  Your  Majesty  might  do  worse,"  said  the  General. 
"  The  officers  in  your  Majesty's  first  regiment  of 
guards,  of  which  your  Majesty's  cousin  His  Royal 
Highness  the  Grand  Duke  Fritz  has  the  honour  to 
be  colonel,  are  as  dissipated  a  set  of  young  black- 
guards as  one  cares  to  be  saluted  by." 

"  Dissipation  and  loyalty  frequently  go  hand 
in  hand,"  remarked  the  King  thoughtfully.  ""  It  is 
the  teetotal  cobbler,  the  non-smoking  lawyer,  the 
vegetarian  schoolmaster  who  are  aU  republicans  to 
the  core  of  their  anaemic  hearts.  The  dissolute 
young  guardsman  has  little  but  his  loyalty  and  his 
dandy  moustache  to  recommend  him,  and  wisely 
enough  he  prizes  them  both."  I  looked  to  see  the 
Grand  Duke's  anger  rise  at  these  uncomplimentary 
references  to  his  regimental  officers.  He  merely 
shrugged  his  shoulders. 

"  Boys  will  be  boys,"  he  remarked. 

"  Yes,  but  it  is  not  necessary  for  them  to  be 
monkeys,"  retorted  the  General.  The  Grand  Duke's 
face  grew  a  shade  darker. 

"  I  hope  you  are  not  thinking  of  my  son,  General,'* 
he  said. 

''  No,"  replied  General  Meyer  with  slow  insolence. 
"  I  never  think  of  dear  Max  after  dinner  :  it  would 
check  digestion." 

For  a  second  the  Grand  Duke  showed  his  white 
teeth  like  a  dog,  and  I  half  feared  violence.     With 


32        FROST   AND    FRIENDSHIP 

an  effort  he  confined  himself  to  a  contemptuous 
gesture  and  a  meaning  nod. 

"  With  your  permission,  cousin,"  he  said,  "  I  will 
withdraw.  Her  Majesty  expressed  a  desire  to  talk 
with  me  after  dinner  concerning  what  guests  I 
should  invite  to  my  Winter  Ball  at  the  Marien- 
kastel." 

"  That,"  said  the  King,  as  the  door  closed  behind 
his  burly  relative,  "  is  the  man  whom  the  good 
Grimlanders  would  set  upon  the  throne  in  the  event 
of  my  being  driven  from  my  place." 

"  Assuming,"  I  said,  "  that  after  such  an  unto- 
ward event  he  would  consent  to  occupy  it." 

"  The  Grand  Duke,"  remarked  the  General 
drily,  "  has  many  faults.  A  lack  of  ambition  is 
not  one  of  them.  By  the  way,  your  Majesty,  I 
have  completed  the  scheme  for  dealing  with  a  hypo- 
thetical rising  which  you  commanded  me  to  prepare. 
The  suspected  regiments  are  to  be  isolated  as  much 
as  possible,  and  individuals  of  a  high  position  who — " 
General    Meyer   stopped. 

"  It's  all  right,"  said  the  King,  "  you  need  not 
hesitate  to  speak  before  Saunders.  He  is  an 
Englishman." 

"  I  have  not  the  slightest  objection  to  speaking 
before  Mr.  Saunders,"  said  the  General.  "  The 
details  I  am  about  to  place  before  you  are  far  too 
technical  for  a  civilian  understanding,  while  the 
places  I  shall  mention  will  be  mere  names  to  him 
and  probably  unpronounceable  at  that.  I  ceased 
my  sweet  discourse  because  it  occurred  to  me  that 
some  one  might  be  listening  outside  the  door.     It  is 


FROST    AND    FRIENDSHIP        33 

just  the  gentlemanly  sort  of  thing  your  devoted 
cousin  Fritz  would  love  to  do.  Shall  I  open  the  door 
and  see  ?  " 

"  Certainly  not,"  said  the  King.  "  This  chamber 
was  built  with  a  view  to  secrecy,  and  the  man  who 
can  hear  through  that  door  has  yet  to  be  created." 

"  Then  I  take  it  we  enjoy  absolute  privacy  ?  " 

"  Unquestionably.  This  is  the  old  Schweigen- 
kammer,  an  apartment  used  by  my  less  reputable 
predecessors  for  secret  entertainments  of  a  festive 
character.  Not  only  could  no  one  outside  by  any 
possibility  overhear  what  was  taking  place  within, 
but  no  servants  even  were  allowed  in  the  room. 
The  difficulty  of  getting  fresh  courses  served  was 
overcome  in  an  ingenious  way.  On  a  spring  being 
pressed,  this  round  table  here  descended  bodily 
through  the  floor.  The  dirty  plates  were  removed 
and  fresh  viands  set  upon  the  table,  which  on  a  lever 
being  pulled  below  mounted  again  into  its  original 
position." 

"  And  does  it  work  still  ?  "  I  said. 

*'  Certainly,"  replied  the  King.  "  As  a  matter  of 
fact  the  knowledge  of  some  of  the  goings  on  which 
used  to  take  place  here  managed  at  one  time  to 
leak  out.  No  one  could  imagine  how.  Then  it 
was  discovered  that  a  small  man  from  the  room 
below  could  climb  up  into  the  cylinder  which 
supports  this  table,  and  hear,  fairly  dstinctly,  any 
conversation  that  was  taking  place." 

I  looked  under  the  table,  and  perceived  that  it 
was  supported  by  a  big  circular  post  which  looked 
like  the  section  of  a  largish  oak  trunk.    This,  no 

c 


34        FROST   AND    FRIENDSHIP 

doubt,  was  hollow  and  capable  of  containing  the 
body  of  a  small  human  being. 

"  I  will  show  you  how  it  works  if  you  like,"  con- 
tinued his  Majesty.  "  In  fact  there  is  no  reason 
why  we  should  not  make  a  descent  into  the  chamber 
beneath.  Come,  my  friends,  mount  the  Zaubertisch 
— the  magic  table." 

Following  our  host's  suggestion  we  scrambled 
on  to  the  table,  being  careful  to  avoid  upsetting 
the  decanters  and  wine-glasses  which  littered  it. 
When  we  were  all  three  comfortably  in  position,  the 
King  leant  forward  and  putting  his  hand  inside  the 
mouth  of  the  grinning  boar's  head,  which  he  could 
now  easily  reach,  pressed  a  lever.  Instantly  a 
circular  piece  of  flooring  gave  way  beneath  us  in 
two  flaps  and  I  realised  that  we  were  hanging  from 
the  ceiling  by  the  chain  of  artificial  wax  flowers  which 
I  had  deemed  but  part  of  the  general  decoration. 
Slowly  the  chain  lengthened  and  the  table  sank 
beneath  us  till  the  floor  was  level  with  our  faces,  and 
finally  above  our  heads. 

"  It's  all  right,"  said  the  King,  as  the  Zaubertisch 
came  to  an  abrupt  stop,  "  we  don't  go  any  further. 
Hullo  !     Who  was  that  ?  " 

The  last  exclamation  was  caused  by  the  slamming 
of  the  door.  Someone  had  just  left  the  room  in 
which  we  now  found  ourselves,  and  judging  from  the 
violence  of  the  slam,  the  exit  had  been  a  hurried  one. 

"  Who  was  that  ?  "  repeated  the  King,  jumping 
from  the  table.  Rushing  to  the  door  he  flung  it 
open,  but  all  that  met  his  gaze  was  a  dark  silent 
corridor  merging  into  absolute  gloom. 


FROST   AND    FRIENDSHIP        35 

The  King  repeated  his  interrogation  for  the  third 
time,  and  this  time  with  an  oath. 

The  chamber  to  which  we  had  descended  was 
unhghted,  and  would  have  been  absolutely  dark 
but  for  the  circular  hole  above  our  heads  which  ad- 
mitted a  broad  stream  of  light  from  the  brilliantly 
illuminated  Schweigenkammer.  It  was  lofty  of 
pitch,  a  room  of  massive  beams  and  rough  unplas- 
tered  masonry.  The  table,  on  which  the  General 
and  I  remained  standing,  was  some  height  above 
the  floor,  for  the  big  central  shaft  which  had  seemed 
to  support  it  had  in  reality  passed  clean  through  the 
floor,  doubtless  with  the  object  of  steadying  it ;  other- 
wise, hung  as  it  was  by  a  single  chain  in  the  centre, 
it  would  have  swayed  and  wobbled  at  every  touch. 
The  base  of  the  shaft  now  rested  on  the  floor  of  the 
lower  chamber  leaving  us  at  least  five  feet  from  the 
ground.  At  the  King's  last  enquiry  we  scrambled 
down  and  looked  around.  On  one  side  was  a  huge 
stone  fireplace  capable  of  concealing  half  a  dozen 
people,  but  which  as  a  matter  of  fact  proved  to  be 
quite  empty.  The  only  piece  of  furniture  in  the  room 
was  a  plain  deal  chair  lying  on  its  side.  The 
General  sniffed  meditatively. 

"  Judging  from  the  pleasant  odour,"  he  remarked, 
"  I  should  say  it  was  some  one  who  was  smoking 
one  of  your  Majesty's  cigars." 

"  Fritz  !  "  ejaculated  the  King. 

"  He  could  hardly  have  got  into  that,"  I  said, 
tapping  the  table's  supporting  shaft,  and  thinking 
of  the  Grand  Duke's  enormously  wide  shoulders. 

"  He  could  not    oyerhear  otherwise,"  said    the 


36        FROST   AND   FRIENDSHIP 

King  decisively.    "  Perhaps  he  was  helping  some 
one  else." 

At  this  moment  I  caught  sight  of  General  Meyer's 
face.  His  gaze  was  rivetted  to  the  floor  and  his 
expression  was  that  of  a  man  who  has  solved  a 
highly  puzzling  mystery.  Following  the  direction 
of  his  glance  I  saw  what  I  should  certainly  have  seen 
before  had  not  my  eyes  taken  some  time  to  accustom 
themselves  to  the  gloom  of  the  lower  chamber. 
There  on  the  floor,  and  pojecting  from  the  bottom 
of  the  table's  shaft  was  a  decent  sized  piece  of  a 
lady's  skirt.     It  was  of  a  vivid  green  colour. 

The  explanation  was  obvious.  Someone  who 
knew  the  secret  of  the  table  had  climbed  up  into 
the  hollow  cylinder  with  the  manifest  intention  of 
hearing  General  Meyer's  report.  That  someone 
had  failed  to  anticipate  the  possibility  of  the  mechan- 
ism being  put  into  play,  and  the  result  had  been  as 
neat  and  dramatic  a  capture  as  the  heart  of  a  drama- 
tist could  have   desired. 

With  regard  to  the  prisoner's  identity,  the  parti- 
cular shade  of  the  green  skirt  and  its  rich  trimming 
of  old  Brussels  lace  left  us  in  no  doubt  whatever. 

The  situation  was  intensely  comic  and  neither  of 
my  two  companions  was  deficient  in  the  capacity  for 
appreciating  the  humorous.  Yet  there  was  a  look 
on  the  King's  face,  I  had  not  expected  to  see,  a 
look  that  took  away  the  desire  to  laugh,  and  made 
me  realise  that  however  farcical  the  details,  I  was 
face  to  face  with  a  very  real  tragedy.  A  hand 
was  laid  gently  on  my  arm.     It  was  the  General's. 

*'  Let  us  two  go  and  have  a  game  of  billiards," 
he  said. 


CHAPTER   IV 

I  FOLLOWED  General  Meyer  down  the  dark 
corridor,  stretching  out  my  arms  to  protect 
myself  from  imaginary  obstacles.  The  General 
seemed  to  know  the  way  well,  for  he  never  troubled 
to  strike  a  light  even  when  the  darkness  became 
absolute.  Presently  we  came  to  a  narrow  slit  in 
the  masonry  which  admitted  a  faint  but  welcome 
gleam  from  the  snow-lit  night  without.  I  could 
just  see  that  we  were  at  the  foot  of  a  circular  stone 
stairway  and  this  we  mounted.  At  the  top  a  heavy, 
iron-studded  door  gave  on  to  a  corridor,  and  after  a 
long  and  highly  intricate  meandering  we  found 
ourselves  outside  the  billiard- room  door. 

The  sound  of  voices  within  met  our  ears,  and  I 
was  about  to  enter  when  the  General  checked  me 
with  a  hand  on  my  arm  and  a  finger  on  his  own  lips. 
Evidently  the  policy  of  eavesdropping  was  not 
confined  to  the  King's  enemies.  Disagreeable  though 
it  was  to  participate  in  such  an  odious  practice,  I 
realised  that  the  proceeding  was  one  in  which  I 
was  rather  a  spectator  than  an  actor,  and  that  I  had 
no  more  right  to  object  to  this  method  of  procedure 
than  an  onlooker  at  a  game  of  cards  has  a  right  to 
call  attention  to  an  irregularity  in  the  play.  After 
all,  I  reflected,  the  situation  perhaps  was  sufficiently 
serious  to  justify  this  meeting  of  guile  by  guile,  and 


38        FROST   AND   FRIENDSHIP 

honour,  like  morality,  was  largely  an  affair  of  latitude 
and  longitude. 

The  first  voice  I  heard  was  that  of  the  Princess 
Mathilde.  There  was  no  laughter  in  her  tones  now 
but  the  quavering  excitement  of  scornful  anger. 

"  You  call  yourself  a  priest,"  she  said  bitterly, 
"  and  you  are  ignorant  of  a  priest's  first  duty — 
obedience." 

"Who  told  you  a  priest's  first  duty  was 
obedience  ?  "  was  the  calm  retort  in  a  singularly 
deep    voice. 

"  I  know  it,"  was  the  inconsequent  reply.  "  Is 
not  discipline  the  very  backbone  of  the  church  ? 
Who  are  you  to  set  yourself  up  against  the  Arch- 
bishop of  Weidenbruck  ?  " 

"  I  am  a  man,"  replied  the  deep  voice,  "  and  I 
have  a  conscience." 

*'  A  conscience  that  rebels  against  authority," 
countered  the  Princess  contemptuously,  "  and  you 
call  yourself  a  good  Catholic !  " 

"  I  would  sooner  be  a  good  man  than  a  good 
Catholic." 

"  Bah  !   you  talk  like  a  pernicious  heretic." 

"  A  daughter  should  obey  her  parents,"  retorted 
the  other  ;  "  yet  there  are  things  which  you  would 
refuse — and  rightly — to  do  at  your  father's  bidding. 
Man  is  imperfect,  and  absolute  authority  is  a  thing 
to  be  entrusted  to  few.  Because  the  Archbishop 
lays  down  an  improper  course  of  action  for  her 
Majesty,  is  it  necessary  that  I  should  support  his 
erroneous  policy  by  advice  which  would  come  from 
my  lips,  and  my  lips  alone." 


FROST    AND    FRIENDSHIP        39 

"  Miss  Anchester,  did  you  ever  hear  such  casuis- 
try ?  "  cried  the  Princess. 

"  It's  no  good  appeahng  to  me,"  came  the  cool 
dispassionate  tones  of  the  governess,  "  you  see  I  am 
only  a  pernicious  heretic." 

"  But  surely  your  clergy  obey  their  bishops." 

"  Not  invariably,"  was  Miss  Anchester's  dry 
but  truthful  answer.  "  But  I  fail  to  see  that  you 
have  much  to  grumble  at.  If,  as  you  say,  the  Queen 
is  a  good  Catholic  she  will  assuredly  obey  the  Arch- 
bishop rather  than  a  subordinate." 

"  The  Queen  is  a  deeply  religious  woman,"  said  the 
Princess,  "  she  is  always  having  conversations 
with  me  of  a  spiritual  nature,  and  I  know  that  she 
sets  the  welfare  of  her  soul  above  all  things.  Her 
instinct  is  to  do  right  as  the  Archbishop  tells  her ; 
but  it  is  hard  for  her  to  do  her  duty  with  this  man 
always  at  her  elbow  advocating  his  vile  theories. 

*'  The  vile  theories  of  conjugal  fidelity  and  pa- 
triotism," added  the  bass  voice,  with  a  touch  of  calm 
scorn. 

"  Oh,  I  hate  you  !  "  cried  the  Princess  wrathfully. 

"  Listen,"  continued  the  other  sternly,  "  you 
say  it  is  the  Queen's  duty  to  play  her  husband 
false,  to  betray  his  plans  to  another  who  wishes  to 
usurp  his  throne.  Are  these  things  in  accordance 
with  your  abstract  ideas  of  virtue,  or  are  they 
justified  by  some  great  moral  delinquency  on  the 
King's   part  ?  " 

"He  is  an  atheist." 

*'  He  is  a  freethinker  who  has  quarrelled  with  the 
Archbishop.     His  theological  views  may  be  regret- 


40        FROST    AND    FRIENDSHIP 

table,  but  on  the  subject  of  his  quarrel,  far  too 
delicate  a  matter  for  your  ears,  I  hold  that  His 
Majesty  was  unquestionably  in  the  right." 

"  Time-server !  " 

I  heard  the  impatient  stamp  of  a  foot,  and  the 
male  voice  answered  with  the  vibration  of  rising  anger. 

"  Foolish  girl,"  it  cried,  "  what  have  you  to  do 
with  politics  ?  What  do  you  know  of  the  world  and 
its  wickedness  at  your  years  ?  Go  back  to  the 
Marienkastel  and  pray  God  on  your  bended  knees 
to  deliver  you  from  the  faults  of  your  race,  pride, 
temper   and   ungovernable   ambition." 

But  the  Princess  was  not  to  be  cowed,  and  there 
was  a  fearless  reiteration  of  the  opprobrious  epithet, 
"  Time-server !  " 

I  saw  my  companion's  face  wrinkle  into  a  smile 
of  infinite  amusement.  Suddenly  I  heard  steps 
approaching  down  the  corridor,  and  without  a 
moment's  hesitation  the  General  thrust  me  into  the 
shadow  of  a  pilaster,  and  flattened  himself  against 
the  wall  by  my  side.  The  approaching  individual 
was  the  Grand  Duke  Fritz.  His  black  beard  thrust 
viciously  in  front  of  him,  his  bared  white  teeth, 
his  gleaming  eye  and  hurried  rolling  gait  presented 
a  picture  of  unedifying  and  uncontrollable  passion. 
Without  glancing  to  left  or  right  he  made  straight 
for  the  billiard  room  and  flung  open  the  door. 

"  Is  that  cursed  priest  here  ?  "  he  demanded, 
"I've  searched  the  whole  Brun-varad  for  his  vulture 
face — ah !  there  he  is."  Obeying  the  pressure  of 
General  Meyer's  hand  I  entered  the  billiard  room 
with  him.    The  scene  that  met  our  gaze  might 


FROST    AND    FRIENDSHIP         41 

have  been  a  prearranged  tableau,  so  dramatic  was 
its  disposition,  so  effectively  were  the  figures  posed. 
On  one  side  of  the  fully-lighted  billiard  table  stood 
the  two  ladies,  the  Princess  and  the  governess, 
the  dark  Grimlander  and  the  fair  English  girl.  At 
the  rough  threatening  intrusion  of  the  Grand  Duke 
they  had  joined  hands  with  an  instinct  of  mutual 
support  in  the  face  of  possible  violence.  On  the 
other  side  of  the  table,  his  broad  back  towards  us, 
was  the  Grand  Duke,  his  whole  attitude  menacing 
and  furious.  Beyond,  and  facing  us,  was  a  tall  young 
man  of  about  five  and  twenty,  dressed  in  the  long 
black  garments  of  a  priest.  His  forehead  was 
lofty,  his  cheekbones  prominent,  his  nose  high  and 
aquiline.  It  was  a  pale  proud  face  with  big  flash- 
ing eyes  and  a  mouth  that  seemed  readier  for  scorn 
and  rebuke  than  comfort  or  tenderness.  Not  one  of 
the  four  noticed  our  quiet  entry. 

"  Schweinhund,"  spluttered  the  Grand  Duke,  if 
possible  a  deadlier  insult  in  Grimland  than  in  other 
German  speaking  countries.  "  You  told  the  King 
that  the  Queen  and  I  were  listening  underneath  the 
Sch  weigenkammer . ' ' 

"  Your  Royal  Highness  is  mistaken,"  replied 
the  priest  calmly,  "  I  gave  the  King  no  such  informa- 
tion for  the  simple  reason  I  had  no  such  information 
to  give." 

"  Liar  !  you  wheedled  our  plans  out  of  the  Queen 
and  then  betrayed  them." 

A  faint  tinge  of  colour  came  into  the  priest's  pale 
cheeks  at  this  insolent  reflection  on  his  professional 
reticence,  but  he  controlled  himself  admirably. 


42        FROST   AND    FRIENDSHIP 

"  You  are  wrong,"  he  answered,  "  and  you  have 
only  to  inquire  of  her  Majesty  to  prove  your  error. 
She  made  no  mention  to  me  of  any  intention  of  eaves- 
dropping beneath  the  Schweigenkammer." 

"  Then  how  was  it,"  demanded  the  Grand  Duke 
fiercely,  "  that  when  with  my  assistance  she  had 
cHmbed  up  into  the  shaft  of  the  zaubertisch,  the 
mechanism  of  the  cursed  thing  was  put  in  motion 
and  her  Majesty  caught  hke  a  rat  in  a  trap?  " 

There  was  a  Httle  gasp  of  astonishment  from 
the  Princess  at  the  information  conveyed  in  these 
words,  and  a  gleam  of  amusement  shone  in  the  priest's 
eyes.  He  did  not  answer  however,  but  merely 
shrugged  his  shoulders. 

"  Was  it  chance,  or  was  it  treachery  ?  "  per- 
sisted the  Grand  Duke  aggressively. 

"  Your  Royal  Highness  seems  to  forget  the  exis- 
tence   of    Providence." 

"  Providence  !  Geierfalker,  why  should  Provi- 
dence help  you  ?  The  Queen  is  as  often  on  her 
knees  as  you." 

"The  prayers  of  a  righteous  man  avail  much," 
quoted  the  priest  scornfully,  "  the  prayers  of  a 
treacherous  woman  are  possibly  less  effective." 

The  answer  was  swift  and  unexpected.  Losing 
the  remnant  of  his  self-control  the  Grand  Duke 
struck  the  priest  a  heavy  blow  with  his  right  fist. 
The  stricken  man  reeled,  but  for  an  instant  only. 
He  was  a  tall  man,  and  the  blow  which  had  been 
meant  for  his  face  had  only  reached  his  hard  lean 
chest.  The  light  of  battle  kindled  in  his  eye,  and 
for  the  moment  I  feared  we  were  about  to  witness 


FROST    AND    FRIENDSHIP         43 

an  unedifying  rough-and-tumble.  Then  something 
seemed  to  check  the  priest  in  his  counter-attack, 
and  I  saw  that  in  the  Grand  Duke's  hand  which 
would  have  checked  any  one  but  a  madman — 
the  gleaming  barrel  of  a  Grimland  army  revolver. 

"  Don't  lose  your  temper  Mr.  Vulture-priest," 
said  the  Grand  Duke,  whose  calmness  had  returned 
suddenly  in  the  face  of  a  possible  attack,  "  I  don't 
want  holy  blood  on  my  soul." 

"  Some  things  are  too  foul  to  be  stained,"  cried 
the  other  bitterly. 

"  Father,  don't  kill  him  !  "  cried  the  Princesss, 
who  evidently  anticipated  the  worst  results  from 
this  retort.  But  the  Grand  Duke  remained  with 
his  revolver  covering  the  priest's  body,  silent  and 
unheeding. 

"  Your  Royal  Highness,"  said  General  Meyer 
in  the  silence  that  followed  the  Princess'  interrup- 
tion. Instantly  everyone  but  the  Grand  Duke 
looked  at  us  in  open-eyed  astonishment. 

"  Your  Royal  Highness,"  repeated  the  com- 
mander-in-chief in  a  voice  that  cut  like  a  knife. 
At  this  second  address  the  burly  Fritz  looked  round, 
and  as  his  gaze  fell  on  the  General's  sneering  face  the 
old  look  of  fury  rushed  back  into  his  fierce 
eyes. 

"  What  the  devil  are  you  doing  here  ?  "  he  asked 
dropping  the  muzzle  of  his  weapon. 

The  General  gave  the  slightest  possible  shrug  to 
his  shoulders. 

"  At  present  absolutely  nothing,"  he  replied, 
"  but  I  have  every  intention  of  having  a  game  of 


44        FROST    AND    FRIENDSHIP 

billiards  with  Mr.  Saunders  if  you  will  kindly  move 
to  the  side  of  the  room." 

The  Grand  Duke  glared  with  unmistakable  wrath 
and  some  measure  of  perplexity. 

"  I  suppose  you  have  been  listening,"  he  said  a 
length. 

"  One  must  be  in  the  fashion." 

"Bah!  a  vulture  for  a  priest,  a  crow  for  a 
commander-in-chief !  What  a  household !  Come 
Mathilde,  we  will  return  to  the  Marienkastel,"  and 
with  these  uncomplimentary  metaphors  the  King's 
cousin  swung  out  of  the  room  followed  by  his 
daughter. 

The  General  was  the  first  to  break  the  silence 
which  followed  the  withdrawal  of  the  Schatten- 
bergs. 

"  I  should  leave  Weissheim  if  I  were  you,  father 
Bernhard,"  he  said.  "  It  is  a  healthy  enough  place 
for  most  people,  but  you  are  quite  exceptional." 

"  In  what  way,  General  ?  " 

"  The  majority  find  the  bracing  air  good  for  the 
chest,"  and  the  commander-in-chief  lightly  tapped 
the  priest  where  the  Grand  Duke  had  struck 
him. 

"It  is  my  duty  to  be  here,"  replied  the  other 
gravely,  "  and  I  trust  I  am  not  the  one  to  desert  the 
post  which  duty  has  assigned  me." 

"  Especially  if  the  post  is  a  combative  one, 
eh  ?  You  should  have  been  a  soldier,  father,  not 
a  priest.  I  assure  you  the  army  of  Grimland  is 
badly  in  want  of  a  little  stiffening  just  at  present." 

A  smile   of   gratification   lightened    the   priest's 


FROST   AND    FRIENDSHIP        45 

stem  features,  and  bowing  formally  to  us  he  with- 
drew. 

"  Now  for  billiards,  Mr.  Saunders,"  said  the 
General.  "  I  am  but  a  poor  performer  though  a 
most  painstaking  and  accurate  marker.  If  Miss 
Anchester  will  condescend  to  play  with  you,  she 
will  give  you  a  far  better  game  than  a  poor  duffer 
like  myself." 

Miss  Anchester  shook  her  head.  "  I  am  just  going 
to  retire,  thank  you,"  she  said  ;  "  besides,  I  should 
never  have  the  temerity  to  pit  myself  against  such 
a  splendid  player  as  Mr.  Saunders." 

"  How "  I  began,  well  pleased  and  wonder- 
ing how  the  fact  that  I  had  won  the  Varsity  cue 
had  filtered  up  to  these  far  regions.  Then,  as  I 
caught  sight  of  the  governess'  face,  I  checked  myself. 
Her  expression  was  not  appreciative,  it  was  sarcastic. 


CHAPTER   V 

TV/TY  first  night's  rest  at  the  Brun-varad  was  a 
-^-^-^  very  sleepless  one,  but  I  was  not  foolish 
enough  to  attribute  this  to  strange  surroundings  or 
a  strange  bed.  As  a  matter  of  fact  my  couch  was  a 
large  and  particularly  comfortable  one,  and  on  the 
whole  I  sleep  rather  better  than  usual  in  an  unfa- 
miliar bed-chamber.  I  ascribed  my  lack  of  repose 
partly  to  the  high  exciting  air  of  our  lofty  plateau, 
and  partly  to  the  strange  disturbing  thoughts  which 
the  events  of  the  evening  had  given  birth  to.  It 
was  obvious  that  the  palace  which  sheltered  me 
was  the  home  of  a  threatened  man  :  that  the  treason 
which  menaced  him  was  engendered  in  the  bosoms  of 
the  highest ;  that  the  heart  that  of  all  hearts  should 
have  beaten  true  for  him  was  without  a  shadow  of 
doubt  tainted  and  utterly  corrupt.  I  thought  of 
King  Karl's  face  when  he  had  caught  sight  of  that 
tell-tale  gown,  and  a  great  pity  rose  in  my  breast 
for  him.  I  liked  the  King.  It  seemed  to  me  impos- 
sible to  know  him  and  not  to  like  him.  He  was 
so  full  of  spirits,  so  genial,  so  boyish,  so  utterly  free 
from  pride  of  birth  or  position.  His  unthinking, 
unhesitating  confidence  in  myself  had  welded  a 
bond  of  loyalty  that  almost  rehabilitated  my  long- 
shattered  belief  in  the  divine  right  of  kings. 


FROST   AND    FRIENDSHIP        47 

I  rose  in  the  morning  partially  refreshed  with 
short  snatches  of  dream-ridden  slumber,  keen  for 
the  experiences  of  the  day,  and  revelling  in  the  view 
of  snowclad  hills  and  sky  afforded  by  my  double- 
casemented  window. 

Coffee  and  eggs  and  honey  were  served  in  the 
little  pleasant  sitting-room  reserved  for  my  use,  and 
after  I  had  smoked  a  pipe  and  written  a  letter  to 
my  mother  I  found  my  way  down  to  the  great 
sumptuous  hall  which  the  present  monarch  had 
evolved  out  of  a  coterie  of  small  and  picturesquely 
inconvenient  apartments. 

I  found  my  host  seated  in  front  of  a  open  fire,  in 
the  depths  of  an  enomious  armchair.  A  large 
meerschaum  pipe  was  between  his  lips,  and  he  was 
studying  a  bundle  of  papers  through  thick-rimmed 
pince-nez.  A  huge  snow-white  St.  Bernard  lay  at 
his  feet,  and  as  I  approached  the  great  beast  rose 
leisurely  to  his  feet  and  advanced  affably  towards 
me. 

"  Good-morning,  Saunders,"  said  His  Majesty, 
"  you  slept  well  I  trust." 

"  Tolerably  well,  thank  you  sire,"  I  answered. 
"  And  I  intolerably  badly,"  he  said,  more  to  himself 
than  to  me.  "  I'm  glad  the  dog  likes  you,"  he  went 
on  musingly,  "  he  doesn't  take  to  most  people.  In 
fact  you're  rather  a  surly  old  beast,  aren't  you 
Mogul  ?  By  the  way,  Saunders,  I  owe  you  an 
apology.  When  I  asked  you  to  visit  us  out  here 
I  knew  that  the  subterranean  politics  of  this  unhappy 
land  were  simmering  dangerously — that  is  their 
chronic  state.    But   I  had  no  idea  things  would 


48        FROST   AND    FRIENDSHIP 

come  to  a  crisis  as  they  threaten  to  do  now.  You 
see  these  papers  I  am  reading  ?  They  are  General 
Meyer's  report  on  the  military  situation  and  his 
plans  for  the  disposition  of  troops  in  the  event  of  a 
popular  uprising.  My  good  cousin  Fritz  would 
give  five  years  of  his  restless  life  for  five  minutes 
perusal  of  these  dry  statistics.  Nevertheless,"  he 
added  with  a  smile,  "  I  have  every  reason  to  suppose 
that  his  wish  will  remain  ungratified."  And  so 
saying  the  King  threw  the  whole  bundle  into  the 
fire,  where  in  a  few  seconds  they  were  reduced  to 
blackened  ashes.  "  As  a  matter  of  fact,"  he  went 
on,  "  We  shall  prepare  a  spurious  report  and  con- 
trive to  get  it  stolen,  or  at  least  surreptitiously 
copied.  The  real  details  are  here  " — tapping  his 
forehead — "  and  in  a  much  cleverer  brain  than 
mine — my  commander-in-chief's." 

"Is  it  not  a  trifle  indiscreet  to  mention  all  this 
to  me  ? "  I  could  not  help  asking.  The  King 
shrugged  his  shoulders.  "  I  am  as  discreet  as  my 
enemies,"  he  said.  *'  Look  at  the  Grand  Duke's 
bahaviour  in  the  billiard  room  last  night,  which 
Meyer  has  reported  to  me.  Even  if  he  had  not 
known  of  the  General's  presence  he  knew  he  was 
speaking  before  Miss  Anchester  who  is  a  firm  friend 
of  mine.  I  may  not  be  a  particularly  cautious 
person,  but  compared  to  me  my  cousin  is  rashness 
personified,  and  I  ask  for  no  clumsier  opponent. 
And  after  all,"  he  went  on  with  a  touch  of  sadness, 
"  one  must  trust  some  one.  I  have  never  yet  met 
an  Englishman  I  could  not  trust." 

"  Your   Majesty's   liking    for   my    country    and 


FROST   AND    FRIENDSHIP        49 

countrymen  is  well  known,"  I  said.  "  You  must  have 
been  fortunate  in  the  specimens  you  have  met." 

"  English  gentlemen  are  all  very  much  alike," 
he  said.  "  They  are  the  salt  of  the  earth.  To  you 
who  have  spent  all  your  life  in  a  country  where 
social  order  and  respect  for  human  life  are  as  much 
taken  for  granted  as  the  rising  of  the  sun,  the  con- 
dition of  affairs  here  must  seem  well  nigh  incredi- 
ble. The  average  Grimlander  has  virtues,  I  admit — 
the  rough  animal  virtues  of  the  wolf.  He  is  fond 
of  his  offspring,  he  prefers  his  own  country  to  any 
other,  and  he  is  amazingly  hardy.  On  the  other 
hand,  his  respect  for  human  life  is  lamentably  insuffi- 
cient. For  his  own  it  is  slight  enough,  for  his 
neighbour's  absolutely  non-existent.  Pity,  honour, 
industry,  application,  self-denial,  these  are  words 
which  do  not  figure  in  his  lexicon.  That  is  the 
average  Grimlander,  mind  you.  The  aristocrat  is 
different — he  lacks  the  animal  virtues  of  the  wolf." 

There  was  silence  at  the  conclusion  of  the  King's 
words.  No  phrase  occurred  to  my  mind  which 
would  not  have  seemed  impertinent  in  its  sym- 
pathy. 

"  And  yet,"  went  on  King  Karl,  after  a  long 
pause,  "  I  love  my  people —  because  they  are  my 
people." 

At  this  point,  our  conversation  was  interrupted 
by  the  advent  of  a  third  party.  Advancing  towards 
us  across  the  hall  was  the  figure  of  a  slim  young 
woman.  She  was  wearing  a  close-fitting  woollen 
jersey,  a  white  beret  on  her  head,  a  short  shirt  of 
dark  blue,  and  a  pair  of  stout  boots  of  which  the 

D 


50        FROST    AND    FRIENDSHIP 

toes  were  garnished  with  sets  of  formidable  iron 
spikes.  It  was  several  seconds  before  I  recognised 
in  this  figure  the  person  of  Miss  Anchester,  the 
caustic  governess  to  the  royal  children.  She  smiled 
brightly  enough  on  me  now. 

"  You  find  my  get-up  very  peculiar,  I  can  see, 
Mr.  Saunders,"  she  began. 

"  I  beg  your  pardon,"  I  returned,  conscious  of 
having  been  staring  rather  rudely,  "  I  did  not 
recognise  you  for  the  moment." 

"We  all  dress  like  this  at  Weissheim,"  she  went  on. 
"  It  is  the  uniform  of  the  place.  These  are  my 
toboganning  boots — I  hope  you  admire  my  rakes." 

"  They  are  most  rakish,"  I  replied,  facetiously, 
"  and  are  you  going  down  the  Kastel  run  ?  " 

"  You'd  better  go  and  watch  Miss  Anchester  do 
the  Kastel  run,"  put  in  the  King,  "  I'm  busy  this 
morning  with  old  Meyer,  otherwise  I  would  take 
you  on  to  the  curling  rink.  Miss  Anchester,  will 
you  be  good  enough  to  look  after  Mr.  Saunders 
till   lunch   time  ?  " 

"  With  pleasure,"  replied  the  governess.  "  Mr. 
Saunders,  I'm  sure,  will  be  delighted  to  pull  my 
toboggan  up  the  hill." 

"  How  long  is  the  hill  ?  "  I  asked  laughing. 

"  Oh,  about  two  miles.  You  look  fairly  ro- 
bust." 

"  I  will  go  and  get  ready  at  once,"  I  said,  and 
suiting  the  action  to  the  word,  I  mounted  the  stairs 
to  my  room,  put  on  my  thickest  Swiss  boots,  a 
sweater,  and  a  cloth  cap,  and  prepared  to  sally 
forth  with  daringly  athletic  Miss  Anchester. 


FROST   AND    FRIENDSHIP        51 

I  shall  never  forget  my  first  daylight  impressions 
of  Weisheim.  The  thermometer  was  showing  forty 
degrees  of  frost,  but  there  was  not  the  slightest 
sensation  of  cold  in  the  air.  The  sun  had  just 
climbed  above  the  shoulder  of  the  mighty  Klanig- 
berg,  and  was  making  his  heat  felt  with  no  uncertain 
ray.  There  was  not  a  cloud  in  the  sky  or  a  breath 
in  the  heaven.  The  earth  was  white.  Mile  upon 
mile,  league  upon  league,  as  far  as  the  eye  could 
reach,  was  snow,  pure,  immaculate,  sound-deaden- 
ing snow.  Below  us  was  the  deep-fronzen  Nonnen- 
see,  so  covered  with  the  all-present  crystals  that  one 
distinguished  it  from  the  land  merely  by  its  smooth, 
untreed,  unrocky  surface.  Beyond,  the  huge  Klanig- 
berg  and  her  flanking  sisters  the  jagged  Eisenzahn 
and  the  graceful  Traualtar.  Half  way  up  their 
towering  sides  the  bare  pines  projected  starkly  from 
the  snow,  while  above,  their  gleaming  whiteness 
was  flecked  with  dark  crags  and  clear-cut  precipices. 
To  our  left  lay  the  town  of  Weissheim  with  its 
dominating  church  and  the  big  rectangular  Pariser- 
hof.  Beyond,  and  far  below,  lay  the  small  village 
of  Riefinsdorf,  its  little  yellow  station  easily  distin- 
guishable in  the  clear  thin  atmosphere.  To  our 
right  and  considerably  above  us  was  the  Marien- 
kastel,  the  half-modem,  half-ancient  home  of  the 
Grand  Duke,  a  pink  stucco  building  attached  to  an 
old  stone  tower  considerably  out  of  the  perpendicu- 
lar. Above  all,  the  sky,  and  it][seemed  as  if  Nature 
had  taken  all  colour  from  the  earth  and  crowded  it 
into  one  intense  terrific  blue.  It  was  wonderful, 
beautiful,  marvellously  exhilarating. 


52        FROST   AND    FRIENDSHIP 

"  Well,  and  what  do  you  think  of  Weissheim  ?  " 
asked  my  companion. 

I  had  fetched  her  toboggan  out  of  a  shed,  and 
was  dragging  it  easily  along  the  path  in  the  direc- 
tion of  the  Marienkastel. 

Somehow  in  her  athletic  guise,  her  cheeks  glowing 
healthily  in  the  keen  mountain  air,  she  looked  quite 
different  from  the  stately  creature  of  the  night 
before,  much  more  girlish  and  natural  I  thought  : 
and  she  smiled  so  frankly  and  pleasantly  upon  me 
that  I  wondered  if  the  prejudices  I  had  formed 
against  her  were  really  as  well  founded  as  they  had 
seemed  the  previous  evening.  Still,  remembering 
her  remarks  to  me  anent  tobogganing  and  nerve,  I 
felt  I  had  a  grudge  against  her. 

"  It  is  better  than  Whitechapel,"  I  replied.  I 
felt  sure  the  remark  would  annoy  her 

"  And  do  you  live  in  Whitechapel  ?  "  she  asked 
sweetly. 

"  No  ;  in  South  Kensington.  Still  I  prefer  this, 
even   to   Harrington   Gardens." 

"  But  why  drag  in  Whitechapel  ?  "  she  asked. 
"  I  am  afraid  you  were  trying  to  be  flippant.  Never 
be  flippant  when  discussing  Nature.  It  is  the  sign 
of  a  small  soul." 

The  presumption  of  this  young  lady  in  lecturing 
me  in  this  manner  was  far  too  amusing  to  cause 
offence. 

"  I  mentioned  Whitechapel,"  I  said,  in  smilingly 
insincere  defence,  "  because  we  have  a  small  factory 
there,  I  am  the  head  of  a  draper's  firm,  and  we 
employ  a  lot  of  girls  there  making  blouses." 


FROST    AND    FRIENDSHIP        53 

"  Oh,  I  see,"  returned  my  companion  in  all 
seriousness  ;  "  you  mentioned  Whitechapel  because 
it  is  familiar  to  you.  How  interesting  to  be  head 
of  a  draper's  business  and  superintend  the  working 
girls  !  " 

"  I  am  afraid  I  don't  do  much  superintending." 

"  You  are  busy  in  other  ways  ?  " 

"  I  am  rarely  busy  at  all,"  I  said  ;  "  I  fear  I  have 
not  the  business  instinct." 

She  stopped  abruptly  in  her  walk,  and  looked 
at  me  in  undisguised  dismay,  almost  horror. 

"  You  don't  take  an  interest  in  your  business !  " 
she  ejaculated. 

I  could  not  refrain  from  laughing. 

*'  You  make  me  feel  like  a  criminal,"  I  said. 

"  I  should  think  so,"  she  said,  melting  ever  so 
little ;  "I  had  hoped  you  had  one  redeeming 
characteristic." 

I  ought  to  have  been  offended,  for  our  acquaintance 
hardly  warranted  this  familiarity. 

"  I  am  an  excellent  beast  of  burden,"  I  pro- 
tested with  a  gesture  towards  the  toboggan. 

She  laughed  at  that,  and  then,  as  if  repenting  of 
the  concession,  made  the  latter  part  of  her  laugh 
scornful. 

"  Yes,"  she  said,  "  you  are  an  excellent  beast 
of  burden." 

After  that  we  walked  on  in  silence  till  presently 
we  came  across  the  toboggan  track. 

"  This  is  the  Kastel  run,"  she  explained  briefly 
and  not  without  a  touch  of  reverence. 

I  looked  at  the  track  with  curiosity.    It  was 


54        FROST   AND    FRIENDSHIP 

four  or  five  feet  wide  and  the  surface  was  of  snow 
turned  into  ice  by  the  process  of  watering.  On 
each  side  of  the  course  were  httle  banks  about  a 
couple  of  feet  high,  also  of  iced  snow  and  hard  as 
iron.  The  run  did  not  strike  me  as  particularly 
steep,  but  the  surface  was  so  absolutely  slippery 
that  I  could  well  imagine  a  great  rate  of  speed  being 
attained  on  it. 

Next  moment  there  was  a  slight  scraping  sound 
and  an  old  lady,  a  Grimlander,  came  lugeing  round 
the  corner.  She  was  a  brown-faced,  wrinkled  old 
creature,  sitting  up  comfortably  on  her  machine, 
both  feet  pressed  flat  on  the  surface  of  the  track, 
and  holding  a  cord  in  her  hand  as  if  she  were  guiding 
a  horse.  In  a  few  minutes  she  was  lost  to  view 
round  another  bend.  The  pace  seemed  to  me 
extremely  dangerous. 

"  She  goes  well,"  I  remarked. 

Miss  Anchester  laughed  scornfully. 

"  She  does  not  mean  going  too  fast,"  she  said. 

"  Not  fast  ?  " 

"  No :  she  keeps  her  feet  down.  Besides  she's 
riding  a  'schUttli.'  You  can't  get  up  any  pace 
on  an  old-fashioned  thing  like  a  '  schlittli.'  " 

"  And  what  do  you  ride  ?  "  I  asked. 

"  Oh,  I  ride  a  '  skeleton  '.  " 

I  looked  at  the  toboggan  which  I  was  trailing 
behind  me.  It  was  just  an  open  framework  of 
steel  runners  with  a  small  wooden  cross-seat  which 
shifted  backwards  and  forwards  like  the  sliding- 
seat  of  a  racing  boat. 

"  And  is  it  difficult  ?  "    I  asked. 


FROST   AND    FRIENDSHIP        55 

*•  It  is  easy  enough  in  the  straight,"  was  the 
reply  ;  "  the  comers  take  a  Httle  negotiating  though. 
Let  us  walk  on  a  little  higher  and  we  shall  see  a 
bend — the  Devil's  elbow." 

The  quaintly-named  bend  which  we  were  soon 
abreast  of  was  remarkable  for  the  alteration  in  the 
height  of  the  bank.  Instead  of  being  only  some 
two  feet  high,  the  exterior  boundary  of  the  curve 
rose  abruptly  to  a  height  of  at  least  ten  feet ;  and 
instead  of  being  perpendicular  to  the  track,  sloped 
upwards  at  an  angle  of  about  sixty  degrees.  The 
object  of  this  was  made  manifest  directly.  A 
tobogganner  was  coming  down,  a  man  this  time, 
and  travelling  head-foremost.  As  he  reached  the 
bend  his  machine  dashed  up  the  bank  to  within 
a  foot  of  the  top,  kept  at  that  height  for  a  second, 
and  then  sank  again  into  the  trough  of  the  course. 
The  pace  was  absolutely  terrific. 

"Without  that  bank,"  said  Miss  Anchester, 
"  it  would  be  impossible  to  get  round  the  comers. 
Circular  bicycHng  tracks  are  constructed  on  the 
same  principle.  That  was  the  Grand  Duke's  son 
Max.  He  is  a  good  tobogganner  but  he  takes  his 
banks  a  trifle  high." 

"  How  does  one  avoid  doing  so  ?  "     I  asked. 

"  It  is  necessary  to  dig  one's  rakes  into  the  ice 
before  coming  to  a  sharp  tum.  That  reduces  the 
pace  somewhat,  and  when  you  are  tuming,  as  here, 
to  the  right,  you  put  out  your  right  foot  as  far  as 
possible  and  rake  hard  with  it.  Also  much  can  be 
done  with  the  arms,  pulling  the  head  of  the  toboggan 
roimd.    The  penalty  for  taking  the  bank  too  high 


56        FROST   AND    FRIENDSHIP 

is  loss  of  speed.     Besides  you  may  go  over  the  top, 
which  in  a  race  is  of  course  fatal." 

'*  And  unpleasant  at  all  times,"  I  added.  "  That 
I  suppose  is  where  the  danger  comes  in." 

"There  is  nothing  dangerous  in  going  over  the 
Devil's  elbow,"  replied  my  companion,  '"  it  merely 
means  a  drop  of  ten  feet  into  deep  snow.  It  is  an 
alarming,  not  to  say  bumpy,  business,  but  it  gives 
one  a  very  good  notion  of  what  flying  is  like." 

"Without  however  the  advantages  of  wings." 

*'  Precisely,  one  misses  wings  badly  tobogganning. 
There  is  a  bend  further  down  the  run  which  is  really 
dangerous.  It  is  a  double  turn  with  twin  banks 
called  Jonathan  and  David.  If  you  take  Jonathan 
high  you  are  morally  certain  to  go  over  David.  And 
if  you  go  over  David  you  are  morally  certain  to 
fall  a  thousand  feet  to  the  Nonnensee.  One 
avoids  taking  Jonathan  high  by  judicious  raking." 

"  What  would  happen  if  one  went  down  without 
rakes  ?  "  I  asked. 

Miss  Anchester  laughed. 

"Please  don't  try,"  she  said.  "The  thing  may 
be  theoretically  possible,  but  it  is  a  practical  cer- 
tainty you  would  never  get  down  in  safety.  When 
you  make  your  first  effort  on  the  Kastel  run,  rake 
all  the  way — imagine  you  are  in  a  broken-down 
four-wheeler  trying  to  miss  a  train.  Afterwards, 
as  you  acquire  skill  and  confidence,  rake  less  and 
less.  The  less  you  touch  the  ice  with  your  rakes 
the  better  time  you  will  do.  But  beware  of  David  ; 
he  is  a  good  friend  but  a  bad  enemy." 

I  looked  behind  me  to  try  and  follow  with  my 


FROST   AND    FRIENDSHIP        57 

eye  the  windings  of  the  run.  Here  and  there  a 
steep  bank  showed  where  the  track  curved  suddenly, 
but  for  the  most  part  it  was  indistinguishable  in 
the  glaring  whiteness  of  the  landscape.  The  sound 
of  firing  attracted  my  attention  to  a  party  of  tiny 
soldiers  hundreds  of  feet  below  shooting  at  an  ice 
target  on  the  Nonnensee.  Half  way  down  the  hill- 
side a  couple  of  men  were  ski-ing  in  swift  zig-zags 
among  the  pine  trees.  The  speed  they  attained, 
the  ease  and  grace  with  which  they  turned,  fascin- 
ated me.  Presently  one  of  them  fell.  His  pole 
slipped  from  his  hand,  his  long  comical  footgear 
flourished  aloft,  a  feathery  spray  of  whiteness  rose 
momentarily  into  the  air,  and  he  lay  stretched  and 
motionless  in  the  deep  snow.  At  first  I  feared  a 
minor  tragedy,  a  sprained  ancle  or  a  twisted  limb, 
but  in  a  second  he  was  on  his  feet  again  brushing 
the  snow  from  his  clothes  and  glissading  smoothly 
down  the  steep  incline. 

The  extraordinary  beauty  of  the  scene  held  me. 
It  seemed  as  if  Nature  had  made  of  this  high  valley 
a  huge  recreation  ground  for  weary  jaded  men. 
it  was  as  if  she  said ;  "  Come  all  ye  who  work  in 
great  stuffy  cities,  and  whose  eyes  are  weary  of 
close  pent  streets  and  mudstained  pavements. 
Behold,  I  will  fill  your  lungs  with  pure  untainted 
air.  I  will  bound  your  vision  with  mountains 
instead  of  houses,  and  your  eyes  shall  rest  upon 
stainless  snow.  Here  you  can  feel  the  warmth 
of  a  sun  whose  rays  no  vapours  intercept,  no  fogs 
conceal,  but  which  will  never  oppress  you.  Here 
you  can  sport  in  the  most  enjoyable,  the  most 


58        FROST   AND    FRIENDSHIP 

exhilarating  fashion,  and  in  case  you  fall  I  have 
prepared  the  softest  pillows  in  the  world  for  you  to 
fall  on,  the  spotless  pillows  of  my  gleaming  snows." 

'•  You  still  thmk  it  is  better  than  Whitechapel  ?  " 
asked  my  companion  noticing  my  entranced  expres- 
sion. 

'*  It  is  a  white  chapel,"  I  rephed,  "  an  immaculate 
shrine  for  the  worship  of  Nature." 

"  Now  you  are  becoming  poetical,"  returned 
Miss  Anchester.  "  First  you  are  flippant  and  then 
you  become  poetical.  I  am  afraid  you  have  a  very 
unstable  mind." 

"A  stable  mind  is  a  perpetual  boredom,"  I 
remarked.  "  But  if  you  are  going  down  the  Kastel 
run,  had  we  not  better  pursue  our  upward  course  ?  " 

"Vorwarts,  then,"  said  Miss  Anchester,  and  a 
few  minutes  later  we  had  reached  the  starting  point 
of  the  world-famed  run. 

We  were  quite  near  the  Marienkastel  now,  and 
its  quaint  Romanesque  tower  seemed  to  lean  more 
than  ever  from  the  perpendicular.  A  high  wooden 
construction  stood  by,  from  the  summit  of  which 
a  view  of  the  whole  course  could  be  obtained. 
When  a  rider  was  seen  to  fall  a  warning  bell  was 
rung  which  was  continued  till  the  course  was  clear. 
At  the  base  of  this  tower  was  a  small  room  where 
sportsmen  stored  their  toboggans  and  deposited 
their  superfluous  attire,  and  from  which  telegraphic 
messages  were  exchanged  with  the  Weissheim  end 
of  the  run.  A  thin  wire  was  stretched  across  the 
track  both  at  the  start  and  at  the  finish,  and  by  the 
snapping  of  these  the  time  of  each  descent  was 


FROST   AND    FRIENDSHIP        59 

automatically  registered.  When  a  rider  had  fin- 
ished his  course  an  electric  bell  was  rung  from  the 
other  end,  and  his  time  telegraphed  up.  By  no 
possible  chance  were  two  riders  ever  allowed  on 
the  track  at  the  same  time. 

There  were  a  few  men  waiting  their  turn  before 
us.  They  were  dressed  in  sweaters  and  high  white 
leggings  ;  they  wore  thick  gauntlets  on  their  hands 
and  stout  pads  on  their  knees  and  elbows.  All  had 
boots  furnished  with  sharp  iron  rakes. 

"  If  you  walk  down  the  side  of  the  track,"  said 
Miss  Anchester,  "  you  will  see  me  pass  you  long 
before  you  get  to  Weissheim.  There  is  not  much 
amusement  in  watching  the  start." 

I  acted  upon  this  suggestion  and  marched  down 
again  by  the  path  which  bordered  the  Kastel  run. 

At  the  Devil's  elbow  I  waited  a  moment  and 
watched  a  male  performer  negotiate  the  sharp 
turn.  He  did  not  do  it  at  all  well,  his  toboggan 
skidding  sideways  down  the  steep  bank,  throwing 
the  rider  half  off  on  to  the  hard  track.  However, 
he  recovered  his  position  with  an  effort,  and  after 
bumping  rather  severely  into  the  counter-bank, 
steadied  himself  and  disappeared  rapidly  from 
view. 

I  walked  on,  and  after  a  few  minutes  another 
man  passed  me.  His  pace  was  terrific  and  he  seemed 
travelling  with  great  skill,  but  the  tense  anxiety 
in  his  strained  eyes  seemed  to  suggest  that  glory 
rather  than  pleasure  was  the  real  motive  of  his 
descent. 

I  continued  my  downward  course  till  I  came  to 


6o        FROST   AND   FRIENDSHIP 

a  sharp  double  bend  which  I  made  no  doubt  was 
the  famous  Jonathan  and  David. 

The  latter  was  banked  up  to  a  tremendous  height, 
and  wisely  so,  for  it  was  obvious  that  anyone  going 
over  here  would  have  a  fearful  experience,  an 
almost  precipitous  drop  of  many  hundred  feet. 

I  decided  to  wait  here  to  see  Miss  Anchester's 
descent,  and  selected  the  top  of  Jonathan  as  my 
best  point  of  vantage.  I  had  not  long  to  wait. 
There  was  the  slight  scraping  sound  of  iron  runners 
travelling  over  smooth  ice,  and  my  late  companion 
was  in  sight. 

Down  the  slope  she  came,  travelling  smoothly 
but  at  a  tremendous  speed,  straight  as  an  arrow, 
magnificent  in  her  complete  control  of  her  lightning 
craft.  A  wisp  of  fair  hair  streamed  behind  her  ear, 
a  fcdnt  gleam  of  amusement  shone  in  her  grey  eyes. 

Suddenly  I  heard  the  chink  of  metal  on  ice,  she 
swerved  violently  in  her  course,  and  the  toboggan 
instead  of  rising  about  half  way  up  the  bank  upon 
which  I  was  standing,  rushed  straight  towards  me. 
My  first  impulse  was  to  jump  down  out  of  the  way, 
for  it  is  no  joke  to  stand  in  the  path  of  an  erratic 
tobogganer  travelling  at  the  speed  of  some  fifty 
miles  an  hour.  In  the  nick  of  time  there  flashed 
back  to  me  some  caustic  remarks  of  the  governess 
on  the  subject  of  nerve.  I  stood  my  ground  in 
apparent  fearlessness  and  as  I  did  so,  I  read  acute 
distress  in  Miss  Anchester's  countenance.  Some- 
thing was  wrong,  and  as  she  rushed  violently  towards 
me  her  lips  framed  a  breathless  "  Stop  me."  The 
whole  time  from  the  moment  I  had  first  heard  the 


FROST   AND    FRIENDSHIP        6i 

sound  of  her  runners  till  her  face  was  almost  level 
with  my  feet,  was  so  infinitesimally  brief  that  my 
mind  worked  by  instinct  rather  than  reasoning. 
Fortunately  the  abrupt  dash  up  the  steep,  high 
bank  had  taken  off  much  of  her  tremendous  speed. 
Leaning  over  I  caught  her  by  the  arm  and  throwing 
my  weight  back  held  her  against  the  inevitable 
wiench  that  followed.  I  felt  the  muscles  of  my 
arms  crack,  but  my  feet  had  good  purchase,  and 
for  a  second  we  stayed  there  tottering  on  the  sum- 
mit of  Jonathan.  In  that  second  I  saw  the  toboggan 
slip  away  from  its  late  rider,  dash  up  David,  and 
disappear  over  the  top  into  the  silent  abyss.  Then 
as  we  rolled  back  together  like  children  on  a  hill- 
side, tumbling  at  last  into  a  deep  soft  bed  of  snow, 
the  bell  on  the  crow's-nest  rang  out  its  deep  note 
of  warning.  Then  it  was  silent  again — the  course 
was  clear. 

I  looked  at  my  companion  who  lay  motionless 
at  my  side.  Her  eyes  were  closed.  A  letter  which 
had  fallen  from  her  pocket  lay  beside  her. 

"  Miss  Anchester,"  I  said  as  soon  as  I  had  re- 
gained my  breath.     There  was  no  answer. 

Again  I  called  on  her  by  name.  Still  there  was 
no  answer. 

I  rose  to  my  knees  and  gazed  at  her  face.  It  was 
very  pale,  very  statuesque,  very  beautiful. 

Putting  the  letter  which  had  fallen  from  her 
into  my  own  pocket  for  safety,  I  picked  up  a  handful 
of  snow  and  rubbed  her  temples  with  it.  Ahnost 
at  once  the  big  grey  eyes  opened,  calmly  wondering. 
Then  remembrance  lighted  in  them. 


62        FROST   AND   FRIENDSHIP 

**  What  a  little  donkey  I've  been  !  "  were  her 
first  words. 

"  Something  went  wrong,"  I  suggested. 

"  I  lost  a  rake,"  she  said,"  look,"  and  I  saw  that 
the  iron  spikes  were  missing  from  her  right  boot. 

"  Still  that  was  not  your  fault,"  I  said  consol- 
ingly. 

"  No ;  that  was  Krabb,  the  shoemaker's  fault. 
[  will  talk  to  him  presently.  I  called  myself  a 
donkey  because  I  fainted." 

*'  Surely,"  I  said,  "  that  was  a  matter  beyond 
your  control." 

"  Precisely ;  that  is  why  I  feel  so  humiliated. 
The  sudden  loss  of  my  rake  threw  me  quite  off  my 
balance  and  I  dashed  up  Jonathan  instead  of  keeping 
low.  I  should  have  gone  over  David  to  a  certainty 
if  you  had  not  stopped  me.  I  was  afraid  you  would 
jump  out  of  the  way  as  I  rushed  at  you." 

*'  Your  opinion  of  my  nerve  was  not  high  ?  " 

"  It  would  have  been  only  natural  to  have  done 
so.  Fortunately  for  me  you  did  not  take  the 
natural  course.  Had  you  done  so  I  should  now 
be  somewhere  on  the  bosom  of  the  Nonnensee,  and 
my  tobogganning  career  a  thing  of  the  past." 

The  rapid  change  from  insensibility  to  her  normal 
calmness  was  remarkable  and  perhaps  admirable. 
Equally  remarkable  was  the  complete  absence  of 
any  expression  of  gratitude  except  the  implied 
commendation  in  the  admission  that  I  had  not 
taken  the  natural  course. 

It  was  a  little  disappointing,  and  yet  I  could  not 
help  feeling  that  that  commendation,  slight  as  it 


FROST   AND    FRIENDSHIP        63 

was,  was  more  truly  flattering  than  the  spasmodic 
out-pourings  of  the  average  young  woman. 

"  I  hope  you  are  not  very  badly  shaken,"  I  said ; 
"  I  had  better  perhaps  fetch  a  sleigh  to  take  you 
home." 

"  I  am  perfectly  recovered,  thank  you,"  was 
the  decided  reply,  and  in  another  moment  she  was 
on  her  feet  brushing  the  snow  from  her  woollen 
jersey  and  short  blue  skirt. 

We  trudged  along  in  silence,  the  governess  refus- 
ing my  arm,  following  the  downward  track  towards 
Weissheim. 

"  I  suppose  I  shall  funk  David  now,"  said  my 
companion  a  little  bitterly ;  "  I  have  never  funked 
him  yet.  The  only  parts  of  the  course  I  ever 
approach  with  any  anxiety  are  the  crossings." 

"  The  crossings  ?  " 

"  Yes,  there  are  two  places  where  the  track  is 
crossed.  One  is  near  the  start,  which  we  call  the 
upper  crossing,  but  which  is  seldom  used.  The 
principal  one  is  just  below  here,  where  the  Riefins- 
dorf  road  crosses  the  run." 

"  You  mean,"  I  said,  "  that  you  are  afraid  of  a 
sleigh  blocking  your  path  as  you  descend." 

"  Exactly.  It  would  be  terrible,  because  though 
one  can  check  one's  pace  by  raking  hard,  one  can 
no  more  stop  altogether  than  one  could  catch  a 
rifle  bullet  in  a  butterfly  net." 

"  Cannot  one  throw  oneself  off  the  toboggan  ?  " 
I  asked. 

"  One  might,  but  it  would  be  of  no  earthly  use. 
One  would  go  on  just  the  same,  only  in  a  rather 


64        FROST   AND    FRIENDSHIP 

more  unpleasant  fashion.  As  a  matter  of  fact 
there  is  nothing  to  fear  from  this  crossing.  You 
see  that  signal  post  ?  When  that  signal  is  up,  as 
it  is  now,  no  sleigh  may  advance  to  within  a  hundred 
yards  of  the  track.  That  man  there  is  stationed 
to  enforce  the  rule  in  case  some  impatient  driver 
should  disregard  it." 

Hardly  were  these  words  out  of  Miss  Anchester's 
lips  when  there  came  the  sound  of  jingling  sleigh- 
bells.  A  second  later  there  emerged  from  the  pine- 
woods  a  pair-horse  sleigh  furiously  driven  by  a 
cockaded  coachman,  and  despite  the  signal  they 
dashed  recklessly  past  the  hundred  yards  limit. 
Fortunately  there  was  no  tobogganner  in  sight,  but 
the  watchman,  true  to  his  duty,  made  as  though 
to  dart  at  the  horses'  heads.  All  of  a  sudden  he 
stopped,  backed  to  the  side  of  the  road,  doffed  his 
hat  and  made  a  low  obeisance. 

The  carriage  contained  two  ladies.  One  was  the 
Fraulein  von  Helder  •  the  other  was  her  Majesty 
the  Queen. 


CHAPTER   VI 

WE  sat  down  to  lunch  a  partie  carree,  and  it 
was  rather  depressing.  To  begin  with, 
the  female  element  was  absolutely  lacking,  the 
Queen  being  away  and  Miss  Anchester  lunching 
upstairs  with  the  children.  Secondly,  we  were  a 
small  party  in  a  large  room,  which  is  never  a  cheerful 
circumstance.  Thirdly,  my  companions,  to  wit 
the  King,  General  Meyer  and  young  Prince  Max 
were  not  at  their  best,  socially.  We  were  seated 
at  one  end  of  the  Gastzimmer,  a  long  narrow  room 
recently  built  out  on  the  south  front  of  the  Palace, 
with  aHfine  look-out  over  the  valley,  and  a  super- 
fluity of  mediocre  carving  in  highly  polished  pitch- 
pine. 

Prince  Max,  to  whom  I  was  now  introduced,  was 
a  short  but  very  good-looking  boy  with  a  small 
moustache  and  an  exceedingly  pale  countenance. 
He  looked  bored  and  a  trifle  dissipated,  but  his 
features,  which  were  exceptionally  well-formed, 
bore  a  strong  likeness  to  those  of  his  sister. 

As  I  have  already  remarked  it  was  a  depressing 
meal.  The  King  was  obviously  worried  and  absent- 
minded,  and  the  whole-hearted  manner  in  which 
he  neglected  his  duties  as  host  rather  increased  my 
liking  for  him.     I  knew  he  was  in  trouble,  and  had 


66        FROST   AND    FRIENDSHIP 

he  pestered  me  with  small  attentions,  or  worse 
still  tried  to  entertain  me  with  forced  gaiety,  I  should 
have  felt  highly  uncomfortable. 

The  commander-in-chief  was  his  usual  self ; 
silently  critical,  sneeringly  amused. 

Of  the  young  prince  I  formed  an  unfavourable 
opinion.  He  drank  extremely  strong  whiskies  and 
sodas,  and  smoked  cigarettes  (without  asking  per- 
mission) between  the  courses.  Conversation  he 
apparently  had  none,  but  he  made  up  for  this  by 
gaping  elaborately  at  intervals  of  every  three  or 
four  minutes. 

After  lunch  a  man  brought  in  letters  on  a  tray. 
There  was  one  for  me  from  my  mother,  and  there 
was  also  a  note  for  the  King.  "  Excuse  me,  Saun- 
ders," said  his  Majesty  opening  his  missive. 
"  Please  read  your  own  letter." 

I  opened  my  letter  and  read  the  first  page  and 
then,  looking  up,  I  saw  that  King  Karl's  sun-burned 
features  wore  a  more  serious  expression  than  ever. 
He  handed  his  note  to  General  Meyer  who  read 
it  without  any  alteration  of  his  habitual  calm. 

"  Come  and  talk  it  over  with  me  in  my  study," 
I  overheard  the  King  say  in  a  voice  little  above  a 
whisper,  and  he  and  the  General  rose  and  left  the 
room. 

The  result  was  to  leave  me  face  to  face  with  the 
uncommunicative  and  world-weary  Max. 

With  a  sudden  determination  to  mitigate  the 
ennui  of  our  tete  a  tete  I  put  back  my  half-read 
letter  into  my  pocket  and  turned  to  my  silent  com- 
panion. 


FROST    AND    FRIENDSHIP         67 

"  It  is  a  magnificent  view  from  here,"  I  began. 

He  gaped  before  replying. 

"  Yes,  devilish  fine,"  he  said. 

"  I  saw  you  on  the  Kastel  run  this  morning,"  I 
pursued. 

"  Indeed.  Devilish  nearly  had  a  spill  at  the 
Devil's  elbow.  Good  fun  tobogganning,  but  it  don't 
do  after  a  late  night  and  an  injudicious  blending 
of  liqueurs." 

"  Are  you  going  down  again  this  afternoon  ?  " 

"'  No,  I'm  playing  bridge  with  some  fellows  at 
the  Pariserhof.     Think  I'll  be  off  now.     So  long." 

I  bowed  slightly  and  the  young  prince  withdrew 
yawning  from  the  room.  His  English  was  perfect, 
or  rather  it  was  perfectly  colloquial,  which  is  not 
quite  the  same  thing. 

I  breathed  a  sigh  of  relief  at  his  departure,  and 
put  my  hand  into  my  pocket  again  for  my  mother's 
letter. 

I  suppose  Max's  incessant  yawnings  had  infected 
me  with  sleepiness,  for  as  I  fingered  my  epistle 
and  turned  mechanically  to  the  second  page  I  gaped 
audibly.  Next  I  discovered  that  my  attention  was 
not  concentrated,  and  that  I  had  read  several  lines 
without  the  slightest  comprehension  of  their  pur- 
port. Pulling  myself  together  with  an  effort  I 
proceeded  to  make  a  more  intelligent  perusal  of 
my  mother's  hand-writing. 

"  I  trust,"  began  the  second  page,  "  that  you  are 
carrying  out  my  request  with  success  and  without 
undue  friction  •    that  you  are  snubbing  my  dear, 


68        FROST   AND    FRIENDSHIP 

conceited  Robert  on  every  possible  and  impossible 
occasion,  without  regard  to  the  poor  youth's  feelings 
or  the  ordinary  dictates  of  politeness.  There  is  a 
certain  Miss  Blackwood,  in  every  way  a  most 
desirable  young  person,  whom  I  am  sure  he  really 
cares  for,  and  to  whom  I  believe  he  will  ultimately 
offer  his  hand  and  heart,  if  only  you  are  kind  enough 
to  devote  your  very  considerable  talents  to  snubbing 
his  absurd  self-importance  out  of  him.  I  fully 
realise  the  ungraciousness  of  the  task  I  have  im- 
posed  " 

Great  Heavens !    Was  my  mother  mad,  or  had 
I  been  so  far  infected  by  the  yawnings  of  the  pasty- 
faced  Max  as  to  have  fallen  unwittingly  into  the 
land  of  foolish  after-lunch  dreams  ? 
I  turned  to  the  letter's  termination. 

"  Yours  very  sincerely 

**  Augusta  Saunders  " 

■  I  was  more  puzzled  than  ever.  The  only  possible 
suggestion  that  occurred  to  me  was  that  my  mother 
had  started  writing  to  me,  had  been  interrupted, 
and  had  absent-mindedly  finished  the  letter  under 
the  impression  that  she  was  writing  to  somebody 
else.  It  was  not  in  the  least  like  her,  for  my  mother 
is  clear-headed  and  precise  to  a  fault,  but  I  could 
find  no  better  explanation  of  the  mystery.  The 
letter  commenced  all  right,  I  reflected,  and  lazily 
wondering,  I  returned  to  the  first  page. 

The  first  words  that  met  my  gaze  came  as  a 
shock. 

"  Dear  Miss  Anchester." 


FROST   AND    FRIENDSHIP        69 

In  a  second  the  solution,  or  at  any  rate  half  the 
solution  dawned  on  me.  It  was  Miss  Anchester's 
letter  that  I  had  been  reading,  the  letter  which 
had  fallen  from  her  pocket  that  morning  by  the 
Kastel  run,  which  I  had  put  into  my  own  pocket 
for  safety  and  had  forgotten  to  return  to  her. 
Having  read  the  first  page  of  my  own  letter  I  had 
started  hers  on  the  second,  under  the  impression 
that  it  was  the  same  epistle. 

My  first  feeling  was  relief  concerning  the  condition 
of  my  mother's  mind.  The  second  was  a  modified 
self-reproach  for  my  unwitting  breach  of  confidence. 
Then  I  began  to  be  mystified  again.  This  second 
letter  was  undoubtedly  in  my  mother's  handwriting. 
Had  it  not  been  so  my  mistake  could  never  have 
occurred.  The  signature  proved  the  letter's  author- 
ship, if  proof  was  necessary,  but  why  in  the  world 
was  my  mother  writing  to  the  King  of  Grimland's 
governess  ?  I  had  never  to  my  knowledge  met  a 
Miss  Anchester  at  home  or  even  heard  my  mother 
mention  one. 

Slowly  and  almost  automatically  the  words  I  had 
read  came  back  to  me.  I  did  not  of  course  glance 
at  the  lines  again — that  would  have  been  dis- 
honourable— but  the  meaning  of  meaningless  sen- 
tences, the  explanation  of  the  inexplicable,  gradually 
but  comprehensively  illuminated  my  mind.  My 
dear,  delightful,  interfering  parent  had  written 
to  Miss  Anchester,  whose  acquaintance  she  had 
evidently  foimed  under  circumstances  unknown 
to  myself,  asking  her  to  snub  me  on  every  possible 
and    impossible    occasion,    and    regardless    of    the 


70        FROST    AND    FRIENDSHIP 

dictates  of  ordinary  politeness.  All  was  accounted 
for !  The  governess'  caustic  remarks,  her  unna- 
tural brusqueness  (doubtless  far  more  painful  to 
her  than  to  myself)  her  refusal  to  thank  me  ade- 
quately for  my  timely  assistance  on  Jonathan  that 
morning,  all  were  explained. 

No  doubt  she  was  an  ordinary  pleasant  girl, 
ready  enough  to  make  herself  agreeable  to  a  pre- 
sentable young  man,  and  feeling  acutely  the  false 
ungirlish  position  into  which  my  mother's  well- 
meant  bungling  had  forced  her.  How  we  would 
laugh  over  the  incident  later  on  when  I  had  ex- 
plained matters  to  her,  and  how  she  would  apologise 
for  her  unnatural  acerbities  and  presumptuous 
lecturings.  Well,  I  had  the  whip  hand  of  her  now, 
and  as  I  was  strong  I  would  be  merciful,  for  on 
physical  grounds  I  was  disposed  to  approve  of  her. 
Then  I  laughed  aloud.  It  was  so  exactly  like  my 
mother  to  fancy  I  was  in  love  with  the  Blackwood 
girl,  simply  because  in  one  evening  I  had  danced 
a  waltz  and  a  two-step  with  her. 

"  Pretty  little  Agatha  Blackwood,"  I  said  out 
loud,  "  you  are  very  attractive,  very  dainty,  and 
you  have  the  soul  of  a  butterfly." 

"  Isn't  Max  here  ?  " 

I  looked  up  somewhat  startled  and  saw  the  King 
standing  in  the  doorway  with  General  Meyer  just 
behind  him. 

"  Isn't  Max  here  ?  "  repeated  his  Majesty.  "  I 
thought  I  heard  you  talking  with  somebody." 

I  rose  abashed. 

"  I'm  afraid  I  was  talking  to  myself,  sire." 


FROST   AND    FRIENDSHIP        71 

"  The  soliloquy,"  remarked  the  General,  '*  sounded 
highly  poetic  as  far  as  I  heard  it." 

"  It  was  concerning  a  very  charming  woman  with 
whom  I  have  not  the  felicity  of  being  in  love,"  I 
replied. 

"  Where   is   Max  ?  "   asked   the   King   abruptly. 

"  He  said  something  about  bridge  at  the  Pariser- 
hof,  sire." 

"  Saunders,"  continued  the  King,  laying  a  hand  on 
my  shoulder,  "  would  you  care  to  do  me  a  service  ?  " 

"  Immensely,  sire." 

"  You  have  no  plans  for  this  afternoon  ?  " 

"None  whatever." 

"  I  wish  you  would  drive  over  to  Heldersburg 
for  me,  and  bring  back  the  Queen." 

"  It  sounds  simple  enough,"  put  in  the  General, 
"but  in  reality  the  betting  is  against  your  carrying 
out  the  King's  wishes." 

Considerably  mystified,  I  turned  to  King  Karl. 
"  It  Is  necessary,"  he  said  gravely,  "  that  we  should 
take  you  into  our  full  confidence.  The  Queen,  to 
put  it  bluntly,  has  bolted.  This  morning  we  had 
a  royal  quarrel,  which  as  far  as  I  know,  is  very  like 
any  other  sort  of  quarrel.  I  reproached  her  with 
disloyalty  to  myself,  with  conspiring  with  the  Grand 
Duke  Fritz  to  oust  me  from  the  throne,  and  in  par- 
ticular with  having  striven  to  overhear  our  secret  plans 
from  the  shaft  of  the  Zaubertisch.  Now  had  she 
been  as  guilty  as  I  pretended  to  think,  I  should  have 
refrained  from  these  accusations.  The  time  for 
speech  would  have  passed,  and  the  time  for  action 
have  commenced.    My  wife,  so  far,  has  only  played 


72        FROST   AND    FRIENDSHIP 

at  treason,  but  the  game  is  a  dangerously  fascina- 
ting one.  She  is  theatrical,  restless,  inordinately 
vain,  and  unfortunately  she  is  afflicted  with  a 
husband  who  is  singularly  unfitted  by  nature  for 
dealing  with  a  woman  of  her  particular  temperament. 
In  our  disputes  I  am  invariably  calm  instead  of 
violent,  which  irritates  instead  of  overaweing  her. 
She  neither  respects,  fears,  nor  loves  me,  and  the 
only  reason  that  prevents  her  from  going  over  openly 
to  the  enemy  is  that  at  the  bottom  of  her  miser- 
able little  heart  she  is  a  coward."  The  King  paused. 
"  Do  I  make  myself  plain  ?  "  he  added. 

"  You  are  frankness  itself,  sire,"  I  replied  truth- 
fully, and  marvelling  at  his  extraordinary  out- 
spokenness. 

"  I  know,"  he  went  on,  "  that  in  England  it  is  not 
considered  gentlemanly  for  a  man  to  condemn  his 
wife  openly,  however  culpable  she  may  be  ;  but 
this  Grimland  of  ours  is  a  rough  half-barbarous 
country,  and  I  have  never  yet  cultivated  the  art  of 
reticence.  But  to  come  back  to  our  subject,  I 
accused  the  Queen  of  treason  because  I  wanted  a 
disclaimer  ;  I  wished  her  to  produce  some  explana- 
tion of  her  questionable  conduct.  The  result  was 
not  what  I  desired.  She  merely  flew  into  a  violent 
passion  and  dashed  out  of  the  room,  and  my  latest 
information  is  that  she  has  fled  with  the  Fraulein 
von  Helder  to  the  latter's  home  at  Heldersburg. 
Now  the  question  that  arises  is  whether  I  shall 
make  this  flight  the  occasion  of  a  definite  rupture, 
or  strive  to  smooth  things  over  and  induce  her 
Majesty   to   return.    My   instinct   inchnes   to    the 


FROST   AND    FRIENDSHIP        73 

latter  course,  for  a  definite  rupture  with  the  Queen 
would  mean  a  big  accretion  to  the  forces  of  disloyalty. 
Public  sympathy  would  be  on  her  side  not  mine, 
and  the  probable  result  would  be  to  precipitate  a 
general  uprising  of  the  discontented  and  disorderly 
in  favour  of  the  popular  and  amiable  Fritz.  Now 
in  my  opinion,  prevention  is  better  than  cure.  We 
could  deal,  successfully  I  believe,  with  a  revolt, 
and  a  storm  would  undoubtedly  clear  the  air.  All 
the  same,  as  a  man  of  forty  with  a  superabundance 
of  adipose  tissue,  I  dislike  storms.  I  prefer  the 
air  to  cool  gradually  without  any  violent  atmo- 
spheric disturbances.  That  is  why  I  am  asking 
you  to  fetch  the  Queen  back  from  Heldersburg. 
At  present  no  irrevocable  step  has  been  taken. 
The  von  Helders  are  neutral,  neither  hot  nor  cold. 
The  particular  member  of  that  noble  family  who 
has  the  honour  of  being  my  wife's  companion,  has 
the  face  of  a  pig  and  the  mind  of  a  pig.  She  adores 
the  Queen,  who  buUies  her  disgracefully,  but  apart 
from  this  misplaced  affection,  her  thoughts,  I 
should  fancy,  seldom  wander  far  from  the  fascinating 
subject  of  her  bodily  nutriment.  From  the  von 
Helders  therefore  you  will  meet  with  little  oppo- 
sition. What  is  important  is  that  my  unstable 
spouse  does  not  go  over  hand  and  glove  to  the 
Schattenbergs,  and  to  prevent  this  undesirable 
eventuality  I  must  ask  you  to  employ  all  the  means 
at  your  disposal  to  induce  Her  Majesty  to  return 
at  once  to  Weissheim." 

"  All  the  means  at  my  disposal !  "  I  could  not 
help  repeating,  "  what  are  they,  sire  ?  " 


74        FROST    AND    FRIENDSHIP 

"  I  selected  you  for  this  delicate  mission,"  re- 
sumed the  King,  ignoring  my  question,  "  because 
I  know  no  one  else  so  likely  to  bring  it  to  a  successful 
conclusion.  If  I  sent  Meyer  with  a  battahon  of 
Guards,  she  would  resist,  because  the  idea  of  being 
forced  to  return  under  military  escort  would  appeal 
to  her  theatrical  temperament.  She  would  become 
a  martyr  :  the  Brun-varad  would  be  surrounded 
by  a  howling  mob,  the  Marienkastel  by  a  cheering 
one.  If  I  went  to  fetch  her  myself  the  result  would 
be  a  fore-doomed  failure,  for  I  act  on  her  Majesty 
like  a  red  rag  on  a  bull.  You,  she  neither  likes  nor 
dislikes  ;  she  may  listen  to  you  or  she  may  not. 
Anyway,  I  am  convinced  you  are  the  most  likely 
man  in  Weissheim  to  bring  about  the  Queen's  return." 

"  But  why " 

"  The  fact  is,"  interposed  General  Meyer,  "  His 
Majesty  considers  you  have  a  lucky  face.  Square- 
chinned  men  have  a  singular  habit  of  achieving 
success  in  life,  and  success  as  we  know  is  invariably 
the  outcome  of  luck.     You  have  a  lucky  face." 

"  When  shall  I  start  ?  "  I  inquired  of  his  Majesty. 

"  In  half  an  hour  if  you  will  be  good  enough. 
There  will  be  a  royal  sleigh  awaiting  you  at  the 
Siegersthor.  I  am  very  much  your  debtor.  Oh, 
one  moment.  I  do  not  suppose  there  is  any  danger 
connected  with  your  mission,  but  should  you  per- 
ceive any,  turn  back.  The  Queen's  return  here  is 
desirable,  but  it  is  not  worth  risking  an  honest  man's 
life  for." 


CHAPTER   VII 

AT  three  o'clock  I  entered  the  royal  sleigh  which 
was  waiting  for  me  at  the  imposing  Victor's 
gate,  the  great  archway  at  the  base  of  the  Waffen- 
thurm. 

It  was  a  magnificent  afternoon.  The  sun  shone 
with  even  greater  power  than  it  had  displayed  in 
the  morning,  the  sky  was,  if  possible,  a  deeper  blue. 

There  are  not  many  roads  open  in  winter  in  Grim- 
land,  but  the  Heldersburg  road  is  the  highway  to 
Austria,  and  when  a  fall  of  snow  comes  they  drive  a 
team  of  horses  trailing  great  logs  of  wood  behind 
them  to  roll  the  freshly  fallen  crystals  into  a  firm 
compact  mass. 

It  was  a  lovely  drive,  down  the  hill  past  Riefins- 
dorf  and  away  to  the  left,  at  first  between  villas 
and  small  hotels,  each  with  its  covering  of  snow 
and  fringe  of  glistening  ice  daggers ;  and  then 
between  pine  woods  and  half-concealed  boulders, 
with  glimpses  of  frozen  waterfalls,  and  in  the  back- 
ground dazzling  summits  and  the  amazingly  blue 
sky. 

The  buntings  twittered  cheerily  over  head,  and 
my  heart  sang  back  to  them.  "  Surely  if  there  is  a 
Paradise,  it  is  here,  it  is  here,"  was  the  familiar 
refrain  that  rang  involuntarily  in  my  head.  Doubt- 
less the  object  of  my  drive  was  largely  responsible 

75 


76        FROST   AND    FRIENDSHIP 

for  my  unwonted  exhilaration  of  spirit.  The  fact 
that  the  King  had  chosen  me  for  this  dehcate  mission 
was  flattering  to  a  degree.  The  romance  of  the 
situation  and  the  shght  possibiUty  of  danger  roused 
my  enthusiasm  quite  as  much  as  the  bracing  air 
or  the  unmatched  glory  of  the  scene. 

I  had  travelled  but  a  little  way  beyond  Riefinsdorf 
when  my  sleigh  pulled  up  abruptly.  Impregnated 
as  my  mind  was  with  fancies  of  a  dramatic  and 
adventurous  nature,  I  quite  expected  to  find  a  band 
of  ruffians,  armed  to  the  teeth,  disputing  our  path 
And  demanding  instant  submission.  What  I  actually 
saw  was  a  young  lady  standing  in  the  middle  of  the 
road,  and  an  enormously  long,  heavy-looking  tobog- 
gan at  right  angles  to  our  course  and  completely 
blocking   our   progress. 

The  young  lady,  who  looked  very  charming  and 
was  attired  much  as  my  companion  of  the  morning, 
brightened  visibly  as  her  eyes  lighted  upon  me. 
It  was  the  Grand  Duke's  daughter,  the  Prinzessin 
Mathilde. 

"  Oh,  Mr.  Saunders,"  she  cried,  "  is  that  you  ?  " 

"  I  have  every  reason  to  believe  so,"  I  replied, 
jumping  out  of  my  conveyance.  "  Can  I  be  of  any 
assistance  to  you  ?  " 

"  You  might  be,"  she  replied  reflectively.  *'  Where 
are  you  going  to  ?  " 

"  I  am  out  for  a  drive." 

"So  I  perceive." 

"To  Heldersburg,"  I  supplemented. 

"Oh.  I  wish  you  would  come  bob-sleighing 
with  us." 


FROST   AND    FRIENDSHIP        ^^ 

"  I'm  afraid  I  don't  know  much  about  bob- 
sleighing." 

"  That  does  not  matter  in  the  least.  Max  and  a 
couple  of  men  will  be  here  directly.  I  steer  and 
Max  '  brakes,'  and  all  you  have  to  do  is  to  sit  behind 
me  and  lean  over  a  bit  when  we  come  to  the  comers. 
It's  really  very  pleasant." 

"  It  sounds  delicious.  Unfortunately  I  am  taking 
a  message  to  Heldersburg  for  the  King." 

"  Can't  the  coachman  take  it  ?  " 

"Please  don't  tempt  me,"  I  replied.  "The 
idea  of  bob-sleighing  fascinates  me  enormously,  but 
duty  is  duty,  and  I  have  not  the  honour  of  being 
King's  messenger  every  day  of  my  life." 

"  You  might  at  least  have  one  run  with  us," 
persisted  the  Princess.  Her  importunity  was  flatter- 
ing, but  I  had  taken  my  mission  very  seriously,  and 
was  determined  not  to  be  seduced  from  the  path  of 
duty  by  siren  blandishments,  however  innocuously 
meant. 

"  I  fear  not,"  I  replied,  shaking  my  head  sadly. 
"  I  could  not  love  bob-sleighing  half  so  much  loved 
I  not  honour  more.  But  how  comes  it  that  you  are 
here  by  yourself  blocking  the  free  way  with  this 
derelict  craft  ?  " 

"  We've  just  had  a  run  down  from  Weissheim," 
she  explained.  "  We  are  waiting  here  for  a  horse 
to  lug  the  old  '  bob  '  back  again  for  another  run. 
As  the  horse  hasn't  turned  up,  Max  and  his  friends 
are  doing  a  little  ski-ing  down  the  snow  slopes." 

"  You  won't  mind  my  gently  shifting  the  '  old 
bob  '  out  of  the  way,  wiU  you  ?  " 


78        FROST   AND   FRIENDSHIP 

"  I  shall  be  highly  offended,"  was  the  laughing 
response.  "  I  think  it  is  most  disagreeable  of  you 
not  to  join  our  party.  Do  think  better  of  it  and 
let  the  coachman  take  your  stupid  message  to 
Heldersburg." 

"  You  are  a  descendant  of  Eve  and  a  wicked 
temptress,"  I  replied.  "  And  as  I  am  a  descendant 
of  Adam  and  a  frail  man,  I  shall  not  risk  parleying 
with  you  any  further,"  and  seizing  hold  of  the 
"  bob's "  steering  gear,  I  proceeded  to  pull  the 
obstructing  conveyance  to  the  side  of  the  roadway. 

"  Remember  I  am  very  much  offended  with  you," 
persisted  the  Princess. 

"  And  I  with  you,"  I  retorted.  "  I  was  enjoying 
my  drive  immensely  till  you  rendered  it  tame  and 
commonplace  with  your  alluring  suggestions  of 
bob-sleighing,"  and  raising  my  cap  I  re-entered 
my  sleigh  and  bade  the  coachman  drive  on. 

I  watched  the  Princess  mischievously  snatch  up 
a  handful  of  snow  to  throw  after  me  ;  but  snowballs 
are  not  easy  things  to  make  with  the  temperature 
standing  below  zero,  and  a  mere  harmless,  powdery 
cloud  of  white  was  all  the  result  of  her  wicked  machi- 
nations. 

What  a  jolly  little  girl !  I  thought.  How  natural 
and  unaffected  !  How  delightfully  free  from  stupid 
shyness  and  stupider  pride  of  position  !  And  as  my 
sleighbells  tinkled,  and  the  turns  of  the  road  con- 
tinually revealed  fresh  glimpses  of  winter  beauty, 
I  let  my  mind  dwell  pleasantly  on  the  charming 
characteristics,  physical  and  otherwise,  of  the 
sunburned,     sport-loving     little     Schattenberg.     I 


FROST    AND    FRIENDSHIP         79 

looked  forward  to  seeing  her  a  good  deal  during  my 
stay  at  Weissheim.  After  the  unpleasant  atmo- 
sphere of  sordid  squabbling,  of  subversive  intrigue, 
and  deep-schemed  counter-plotting  which  impreg- 
nated the  Brun-varad,  her  cheerful,  thoughtless, 
joyous  little  presence  had  all  the  refreshment  of 
the  clear,  pine-laden  mountain  air.  I  even  began 
to  be  mildly  philosophic,  wondering  why  Nature 
sends  to  scheming,  selfish  fathers,  delightful,  un- 
affected daughters  full  of  frank,  natural,  innocent 
joy  in  life  and  without  the  slightest  capacity  for 
an  evil  thought  or  an  unkind  action. 
•  Unhappily  meditations  even  of  a  mildly  rapturous 
nature  must  come  to  an  end  some  time,  and  mine 
were  rudely  interrupted  by  a  second  stoppage  of 
the  royal  sleigh. 

My  previous  romantic  expectations  would  not  have 
been  so  out  of  place  on  this  occasion,  for  the  road 
was  blocked  by  some  dozen  soldiers  of  the  guard. 
Shod  with  skis  and  armed  with  rifles,  they  were 
drawn  up  in  a  straggling,  menacing  line  across  the 
road.  Their  uniforms  were  of  dark  green  with  black 
facings  ;  they  wore  high  white  leggings,  and  on  their 
heads  scarlet  berets.  They  were  fine,  active-looking 
men,  deeply  sunburned  and  distinctly  picturesque 
in  their  workman-like  uniform.  One  of  them,  a 
sergeant,  blew  a  whistle. 

"  What's  the  matter  ?  "  I  demanded  of  my  red- 
bearded  driver. 

"  He  says  we  must  not  proceed,  Excellency." 

"  Why  not  ?  "  I  inquired. 

I  got  no  more  information  than  was  conveyed  by 


So        FROST   AND    FRIENDSHIP 

a  shrug  of  extremely  broad  shoulders.  Suddenly 
I  discerned  on  my  right  a  further  party  of  half  a 
dozen  men  ski-ing  down  the  hillside  towards  us. 
They  approached  us  at  great  speed  and  with  alarming 
directness.  Just  when  I  imagined  a  collision  to 
be  inevitable  they  turned  their  skis  sideways  and 
jumped  down  into  the  road  in  front  of  ourhoises' 
heads. 

An  officer,  whom  I  now  perceived  to  be  Max, 
approached. 

He  looked  very  well  in  his  smart  uniform,  and  the 
quick  rush  through  the  air  had  lent  a  tinge  of  colour 
to  his  pale  cheeks. 

"  Why  are  we  stopped  ?  "  I  began. 

"We  are  carrying  out  some  important  manoeuvres," 
was  the  reply  ;  "  we  have  fixed  some  dummies  up  on 
road  further  on  and  we  are  firing  at  them  from  across 
the  ravine.  I  am  sorry  to  interrupt  your  drive,  but 
I  cannot  permit  you  to  go  on,  it  would  not  be 
safe." 

"  I  am  going  to  Heldersburg  with  a  message  from 
the  King." 

Max  remained  silent  for  a  moment. 

"  Kindly  show  me  your  message,"  he  said  at 
length. 

"  It  is  a  verbal  message,"  I  replied. 

"  Have  you  no  written  order  authorizing  your 
journey  ?  " 

"  I  have  nothing  but  my  word." 

"  I'm  very  sorry,"  said  the  young  prince  gaping, 
"  but  my  orders  are  positive.  We  are  to  permit 
no  vehicles  or  passengers  along    the    Heldersburg 


FROST   AND    FRIENDSHIP        8i 

road  this  afternoon.  Had  you  a  written  authority 
from  his  Majesty,  I  should,   of  course,   give  way." 

His  tone  was  palpably  insincere  and  I  began  to 
feel  annoyed. 

"  Are  the  manoeuvres  being  held  by  his  Majesty's 
special  command  ?  "  I  enquired. 

"  Really,"  replied  Max  sarcastically,  "  I  cannot 
discuss  my  authority  with  every  one  who  wants  to 
pass  this  way.  You  must  go  back,  my  good  friend, 
and  if  the  matter  is  so  extremely  urgent  get  your 
permit  from  the  King  and  try  again." 

"  I  may  not  be  able  to  find  His  Majesty,"  I 
objected. 

Max  laughed 

"  You  may  not,"  he  said,  "  in  fact,  if  my  informa- 
tion is  correct,  he  is  gone  with  a  ski-ing  party  across 
the  Nonnensee  to  the  lower  slopes  of  the  Klanig- 
berg." 

I  had  the  greatest  difficulty  in  controlling  my 
temper. 

"  Look  here.  Prince,"  I  said.  "  I  cannot  tell 
you  what  my  message  is,  but  I  give  you  my  word 
of  honour  it  is  an  important  one.  If  the  King 
learns  that  I  have  been  stopped  he  will  be  very 
angry." 

"  And  if  my  father  learns  that  I  have  neglected 
my  instructions  and  let  you  pass,  he  will  be  very 
angry.  I  would  sooner  face  the  King's  wrath  than 
my  father's.  No,  man,  it's  no  use.  It's  better  to 
accept  the  inevitable  and  go  back,  than  be  potted 
at  by  the  best  shots  in  Grimland." 

I  looked  at  the  group  of  soldiers  who  blocked 

F 


82        FROST   AND    FRIENDSHIP  ! 

the  way.  They  held  their  rifles  threateningly,  and 
their  maliciously  grinning  faces  seemed  to  my 
imagination  to  invite  the  requisite  permission  to 
riddle  us  with  bullets,  My  coachman  sat  stiffly  on 
his  box,  but  I  noticed  that  his  fingers  fumbled 
nervously  with  the  reins  as  if  his  mind  was  ill  at 
ease. 

"  Very  well,"  I  said  as  calmly  as  I  could,  "  I 
accept  the  inevitable.  Coachman,  turn  round  and 
drive  back  to  Weissheim." 

The  command  was  obeyed  with  an  alacrity  that 
bespoke  extreme  relief.  I  had  a  vision  of  Max's 
pale  sneering  face,  of  half  a  dozen  rifle  barrels 
levelled  playfully  but  regretfully  at  our  heads,  and 
my  sleigh  swung  rapidly  on  its  course  in  the  direc- 
tion opposite  to  Heldersburg.  I  was  angry,  dis- 
appointed, and  not  a  little  humiliated.  After  the 
flattering  way  in  which  I  had  been  chosen  for  this 
mission  it  was  most  annoying  to  be  checkmated 
in  such  unanswerable  fashion.  Without  a  doubt 
the  Schattenbergs  knew  all  about  the  Queen's  depar- 
ture and  were  determined,  as  far  as  in  them  lay, 
to  render  the  rupture  permanent.  But  what  of 
the  Princess'  invitation  to  bob-sleigh  ?  Was  she 
too  playing  her  part  in  the  revolutionary  and 
aggressive  schemes  of  the  Grand  Duke  Fritz  ?  Was 
her  attempt  to  decoy  me  from  the  path  of  duty  a 
mere  coincidence  or  the  result  of  definite  instructions 
from  her  ambitious  parent  ?  I  recalled  her  interview 
with  Father  Bemhard  on  the  previous  evening,  and 
.  alas  !  unflattering  to  my  self  esteem  as  was  the  con- 
clusion, I  could  only  beheve  that  her  strongly  pressed 


FROST   AND    FRIENDSHIP         83 

invitation  was  due  rather  to  the  exigences  of  intrigue 
than  a  frank  girlish  desire  for  the  company  of  a 
passably  interesting  young  Englishman.  And  yet 
I  found  it  impossible  to  be  angry  with  her.  If  she 
had  merely  been  carrying  out  the  Grand  Duke's 
behests  it  was  obvious  that  the  part  she  had  been 
assigned  was  one  that  suited  her  own  inclinations  : 
that  her  conduct  had  been  less  a  deliberate  piece  of 
acting  than  a  judicious  adaptation  of  her  natural 
instincts  to  the  requirements  of  her  father's  policy. 
Anyway,  she  was  a  charming  little  girl,  and  I  felt 
that  she  and  I,  however  antagonistic  our  parts 
might  be,  would  play  them  with  good  nature,  good 
feeling,  and  with  a  strong  appreciation  of  the  humor- 
ous. I  smiled  despite  myself,  as  I  thought  of  her 
snowballing  efforts,  and  then  as  I  remembered 
Max's  sneering  countenance  and  intolerable  manner 
I  frowned  again  and  I  fear,  swore. 

"Coachman,"  I  cried,  as  we  emerged  from  the  pine 
forest  upon  the  outskirts  of  Riefmsdorf,  "  is  there 
any  other  way  to  Heldersburg  ?  " 

"  Your  Excellency  might  go  across  the  hills  on 
skis." 

"  I  know  nothing  about  ski-ing.  Is  there  no  other 
track  ?  " 

"  There  is  a  path  open  through  the  wood — the 
Wald-prom  enade. ' ' 

"  I  will  take  that  then,"  I  said.  "  Where  can  I 
get  into  it  ?  " 

"  It  starts  from  the  road  a  few  hundred  yards  back. 
There  is  a  signpost  and  your  Excellency  cannot 
possibly   miss  it :    nevertheless,   I   would    respect- 


84        FROST   AND    FRIENDSHIP 

fully  advise  your  Excellency  to  let  me  drive  him 
back  to  Weissheim.'* 

"  Why  ?  " 

"  Because  there  will  be  a  detachment  of  soldiers 
on  the  Wald-promenade  just  as  there  is  on  the  road, 
and  our  soldiers  are  not  the  most  patient  people  in 
the  world." 

"  All  the  same  I  shall  make  the  attempt,"  I  said. 
"  His  Majesty  considers  me  a  lucky  man  and  I  must 
live  up  to  my  reputation." 

So  saying  I  descended  from  the  sleigh,  and  bid- 
ding the  fellow  drive  back  to  the  Brun-varad,  re- 
traced my  tracks  till  I  came  to  the  commencement 
of  the  Waldpromenade.  The  path  starting  with  a 
sharp  ascent  plunged  boldly  into  the  heart  of  the  pine 
woods,  but  I  had  hardly  gone  a  hundred  yards  be- 
fore I  came  to  a  halt.  A  seat  was  placed  invitingly 
at  the  edge  of  the  path,  and  I  took  advantage  of  it, 
not  from  a  desire  to  rest,  but  solely  for  purposes  to 
meditation,  To  go  on  was  to  incur  a  certain  rebuff 
and  perhaps  worse.  To  make  a  detour  through  the 
deep  snow  was  an  utter  impossibility.  Had  I  pos- 
sessed a  pair  of  skis  and  the  ability  to  use  them  I 
would  have  chanced  evading  the  soldiery  who  were 
doubtless  watching  the  hill  sides,  and  made  a  dash 
for  Heldersburg.  I  was  just  beginning  to  despair 
of  a  satisfactory  solution  when  my  attention  was 
attracted  by  a  strange  figure  approaching  me  from 
the  direction  of  Riefinsdorf.  It  was  a  remarkably 
curious  figure  too,  when  I  came  to  appreciate  the 
details.  The  man — I  gathered  it  was  "a  man — 
was  covered  from  neck  to  foot  with  a  long  fur  coat 


FROST   AND    FRIENDSHIP         85 

of  a  coarse  and  tremendously  shaggy  nature.  On 
his  head  he  wore  a  dirty  white  woollen  cap,  a  curious 
article  of  attire  so  constructed  as  to  pull  down  over 
his  entire  head,  leaving  a  small  aperture  for  his 
eyes  and  nose,  and  giving  the  appearance  of  a 
mediaeval  helmet  with  the  visor  up.  The  small 
portion  of  his  countenance  left  uncovered  by  this 
serviceable  headgear  was  reduced  to  a  minimum  by 
a  large  pair  of  blue  glass  spectacles,  and  between 
these  loomed  a  nose  of  ample  proportions  and  aggres- 
sive colouring.  In  his  right  hand  he  carried  a  long 
iron-shod  pole,  and  on  his  back  a  basket  containing 
a  crowded,  high-piled  mass  of  tins.  He  walked  slowly 
and  with  a  pronounced  limp.  As  he  drew  nearer, 
he  bade  me  a  gruff  good-day. 

"  One  moment,  my  fellow,"  I  called.    He  halted. 

•'  Who  are  you  ?  "  I  pursued. 

"  I  am  Peter,"  he  replied.  "  Lame  Peter  of 
Riefinsdorf." 

"  Are  you  in  a  hurry  ?  " 

"  Himmel  und  Kaiserfieisch  !  "  he  grunted,  "  am 
I  in  a  hurry  ?  Is  it  any  use  my  being  in  a  hurry — 
me.  Lame  Peter  with  the  frost-bitten  toes  ?  " 

"  I  only  asked,"  I  said,  "  because  I  wanted  to 
chat  with  you.    Where  are  you  going  to  ?  " 

"  I  am  going  to  Heldersburg,  Excellency,  to  sell 
tinned  tomatoes  and  tinned  beans,  and  maybe  a 
little  canned  pineapple." 

"  And  do  you  go  there  every  day  ?  " 

"  Every  day,  Excellency,  and  always  at  this  hour. 
The  train  brings  tinned  fruits  and  vegetables  to 
Riefinsdorf, and  I  take  them  on  foot  to  Heldersburg." 


86        FROST    AND    FRIENDSHIP 

"  And  are  you  well  known  hereabouts  ?  " 

"  Every  one  knows  Lame  Peter,  Excellency." 

"  Good,"  I  said.  "  Now  teU  me,  how  much  do  you 
expect  to  get  for  your  load  ?  " 

"Twenty  florins — perhaps  twenty-two.  The 
profit  is  not  large." 

"  Good,"  I  said  again,  *'  I  will  give  you  twenty-two, 
but  that  must  include  the  loan  of  your  basket  for 
the  afternoon." 

"  Excellency !  " 

"  Also  I  desire  the  loan  of  your  coat  and  your 
beautiful  woollen  cap.  How  much  shall  we  say  for 
these  ?     Five  florins  should,  I  think,    be   ample." 

"  Excellency !  " 

"  Come,  I  will  pay  at  once  and  you  shall  have 
the  things  back  to-morrow  morning.  Put  down 
your  load  and  take  off  your  coat  and  cap." 

The  man  obeyed  me  with  jerky  rheumatic 
movements  and  the  furtive  air  of  one  deahng  with 
a  possibly  dangerous  lunatic. 

"  Now  for  your  staff  and  blue  spectacles,"  I  said. 

"  I  can  walk  but  ill  without  my  staff,  Excellency, 
and  without  my  glasses  the  strong  sunshine  on  the 
snow  pains  my  eyes  exceedingly." 

"  Nonsense,"  I  said,  producing  my  money,  "  you 
can  manage  to  crawl  back  to  the  Drei  Kronen  and 
solace  your  eyes  with  the  sight  of  a  bierkanne. 
There's  thirty  florins  for  you,  on  condition  that 
you  go  back  to  Riefinsdorf  and  drink  my  health 
nobly.  Come,  I  will  take  care  that  your  things 
are  returned  to  you  in  plenty  of  time  for  your  journey 
to-morrow." 


FROST    AND    FRIENDSHIP         87 

"  A  thousand  thanks,  Excellency.  You  will 
not  forget  —  Lame  Peter  of  the  Kuhgasse,  Riefins- 
dorf.     Your  Excellency  is  English  ?  " 

"  Yes,"  I  replied,  donning  the  lame  one's  garments, 
"  I  am  English,  and  therefore  rich,  mad,  and  scru- 
pously  honest.  You  need  have  no  anxiety  for  your 
possessions." 

"  I  have  no  fear,"  he  grunted,  helping  me  to  strap 
on  the  basket  of  tins.  "  Teufelchen,  but  it  is  cold 
without  a  coat.  I  shall  certainly  take  your  Excel- 
lency's advice  and  visit  the  Drei  Kronen.  Good-day, 
Excellency,  and  a  thousand  thanks." 

So  saying  the  old  fellow  hobbled  away  in  one 
direction  while  I  advanced  in  the  other  towards  the 
home  of  the  von  Helders. 

Clad  as  I  was,  and  carrying  on  my  back  the 
basket  of  tinned  provisions,  I  made  no  doubt  that 
I  could  pass,  unchallenged,  for  the  lame  pedlar. 
The  only  uncovered  portion  of  my  countenance 
was  my  nose,  and  though  this  was  in  several  respects 
inferior  to  that  of  my  late  companion,  I  trusted 
that  in  the  friendly  shade  of  the  pine  forest  its 
deficiencies  would  pass  unnoticed.  Realising  that 
any  turn  of  the  path  might  land  me  in  the  midst 
of  the  watchful  soldiery,  I  walked  but  slowly, 
mimicking  as  well  as  I  could  the  halting  gait  of  the 
frost-bitten  Peter. 

It  was  fortunate  I  did  so,  for  a  detachment  of 
guardsmen  had  been  stationed  at  a  sharp  bend  of 
the  track,  and  it  would  certainly  have  been  too  late 
to  alter  my  manner  of  progression  before  I  was 
among    them.     As    it    was    my  arrival  provoked 


88        FROST   AND    FRIENDSHIP 

but  a  momentary  excitement.  There  was  a  sharp 
"  Who  goes  there  ?  "  and  then  almost  before  I  had 
time  to  reply  they  fell  aside.  "It's  only  old  Lame 
Peter,"  they  said,  and  with  a  gruff  "  good-day,  little 
soldiers,"  I  passed  unmolested  through  their  midst. 

Sitting  on  a  boulder  and  swinging  his  short  legs 
was  no  less  a  person  than  the  Grand  Duke  Fritz, 
attired  in  his  colonel's  uniform,  and  holding  a  big, 
drooping  meerschaum  pipe  between  his  teeth. 

"  Good-day,  Lame  Peter,"  he  called  out,  remov- 
ing his  pipe  from  his  mouth 

"  Good-day,  Highness,"  I  replied  making  a 
rheumatic  gesture  of  salute.  He  nodded  cheerily 
and  I  saw  his  white  teeth  gleam  white  against  the 
thick  black  beard  and  moustaches  as  his  lips  parted 
in  a  broad  good-natured  smile,  and  with  an  incipient 
comprehension  of  the  Grand  Duke's  popularity  I 
walked  lamely  and  unhurriedly  on.  The  incident 
was  over  so  quickly,  so  satisfactorily,  that  I  could 
hardly  realize  that  I  had  probably  been  risking  my 
life  on  the  accuracy  of  a  disguise.  One  thing,  at 
any  rate,  was  evident,  namely  that  the  tale  of  firing 
across  the  ravine  at  dummies  on  the  road  was  an 
undiluted  fiction,  and  that  any  one  might  go  to 
Heldersburg  provided  there  was  no  fear  of  his  being 
an  emissary  to  the  royal  fugitive. 

Now  that  the  critical  moment  was  past  I  walked 
on  rather  more  rapidly,  and  after  a  while  the  path 
brought  me  down  to  the  main  road  again.  There 
was  not  a  soul  to  be  seen,  but  below  me  in  the  valley 
lay  the  Uttle  village  of  Heldersburg,  with  its  white- 
roofed,  close  packed  houses,  and  its  tall,  quaintly- 


FROST   AND    FRIENDSHIP        89 

steepled  church  tower.  Outside  the  village,  and 
commanding  a  small  eminence  was  the  Schloss,  a 
brown,  rectangular  building,  old,  gaunt  and  un- 
adorned, a  stubborn  relic  of  mediaeval  Grimland, 
and  to  those  gloomy  walls,  the  ancestral  home  of 
the  von  Helders,  I  made  my  limping  way.  Down 
the  long  winding  road  I  marched,  past  the  church, 
through  the  narrow  streets,  and  as  I  went  the  people 
all  saluted  me  with  a  kindly  "Good-day,  Lame  Peter." 

Some  wanted  to  buy  my  wares,  but  I  told  them 
curtly  that  I  had  an  order  from  the  castle  and  walked 
on.  Slowly  I  climbed  the  hill  to  the  Schloss,  and 
passing  through  the  open  gateway  of  the  drive, 
boldly  rang  the  castle  bell. 

The  door  was  opened  by  a  woman  of  mature  years 
and  more  than  ample  proportions.  She  looked 
untidy,good-natured,  and  palpably  over-nourished; 
and  doubtless  she  was  so,  for  the  von  Helders  had 
liberal  ideas  of  the  alimentary  needs  of  humanity. 

"  What  are  you  doing  here.  Lame  Peter  ?  "  she 
asked,  with  an  attempt  at  severity,  "  why  don't 
you  take  those  things  round  to  the  back  ?  " 

"  I  want  to  see  the  Queen,"  I  replied. 

The  good  woman's  fat  cheeks  dimpled  into  a 
beatific  smile. 

"  You  want  to  see  the  Queen !  "  she  ejaculated 
casting  her  little  eyes  to  the  ceiling.  "  How  many 
seidles  of  beer  have  you  emptied  at  the  Drei  Kronen 
before  leaving  Riefinsdorf  ?  Want  to  see  the  Queen 
indeed  !  " 

"  You  are  labouring  under  a  delusion,  my  good 
woman,"  I  said  calmly.    "  I  am  not  Lame  Peter, 


90        FROST    AND    FRIENDSHIP 

but  a  certain  Herr  Saunders,  who  has  a  message  for 
her  Majesty  from  the  King.  Be  so  kind  as  to  inform 
the  Queen  of  my  desire  for  an  audience." 

The  look  of  astonishment  on  ray  companion's 
face  melted  into  one  of  cunning  incredulity. 

I  removed  my  blue  spectacles  and  woollen  cap. 

"  Now,"  I  said,  "  are  you  satisfied  that  it  is  not 
Lame  Peter  who  speaks  with  you  ?  " 

"  Potztausend !  Excellency,  I  make  my  very 
humble  apology.  I  will  take  your  message  to  her 
Majesty  at  once :  but  I  do  not  think  she  wiU  see 
anyone." 

She  was  about  to  close  the  door  in  my  face,  but  I 
stepped  inside  and  set  down  my  staff  and  basket, 
and  removed  my  shaggy  overcoat. 

The  hall  in  which  I  found  myself  reminded  me  of 
the  Schweigenkammer,  in  that  the  walls  were 
entirely  covered  with  dark  pine  panelling,  and  the 
ceiling  inlaid  with  diversely  and  beautifully  coloured 
woods.  It  was  a  lofty,  handsome  apartment,  a 
trifle  sombre  perhaps  with  its  dark  colouring  and 
small,  heavily  barred  windows ;  but  full  of  the 
indescribable  dignity  which  comes  from  good  pro- 
portion alone,  and  which  is  so  conspicuously  lacking 
in  the  majority  of  modem  dwellings. 

The  stout  lady  mounted  the  broad  staircase  and 
after  a  few  minutes  returned  breathless  and  shaking 
her  head. 

"  Her  Majesty  is  resting,"  she  said,  "  she  refuses 
to  see  any  one." 

'*  It  is  entirely  in  her  Majesty's  own  interests 
that  I  am  here,"  I  said,  with  intentional  distinctness. 


FROST    AND    FRIENDSHIP         91 

"  It  would  be  a  thousand  pities,  from  her  point  of 
view,  if  she  sent  me  back  without  an  audience." 

The  good  woman  looked  puzzled. 

"  Why  ?  "  she  asked  at  length  in  a  wheedling 
voice. 

"  Because,"  I  said,  raising  my  voice  still  louder, 
"  I  have  a  most  important  message  from  his  Majesty 
to  deliver  to  her.  If  she  does  not  get  it  the  conse- 
quences may  be  serious." 

"For  her  Majesty  ?  " 

"  Hush  !  "  I  said  in  a  stage  whisper.  "  I  did  not 
say  that." 

"  Tell  me  the  message,"  said  my  companion 
invitingly,  proffering  a  fleshy  ear  for  my  confidences. 
"  I  will  guarantee  to  take  it  to  her  Majesty." 

'*  Impossible,"  I  said.  "  What  I  have  to  say  is  for 
the  Queen's  ear  alone.  If  you  are  her  faithful 
servant,  go  back  and  tell  her  that  Herr  Saunders 
begs  her  to  reconsider  her  decision — in  her  own 
inter  est. "^^ 

"  I  am  devoted  to  her  Majesty,  Excellency ; 
but  she  has  a  temper,  a  most  energetic  temper. 

However,  if  your  Excellency "    A  voice  broke 

in    from    above — a   harsh   female   voice : 

"  Take  the  gentleman  into  the  library,  Kreifel. 
I  will  be  down  in  a  few  minutes." 

I  had  gained  my  point :  the  Queen  would  see  me. 
What  I  was  going  to  say  to  her  I  had  not,  so  far,  the 
faintest  idea,  and  the  more  I  racked  my  brains  the 
hazier  grew  my  notions. 

I  looked  round  me,  but  could  draw  no  inspiration 
from  the  dark  book-shelves  with  their  recondite 


92        FROST    AND    FRIENDSHIP 

theological  works,  their  musty  histories,  and  pseudo- 
scientific  treatises  on  medicine  and  zoology.  I 
looked  vaguely  at  the  heavy  stone  mantel-piece 
with  its  coarse  supporting  nudities — ancestral  von 
Helders  surely — and  its  pompous  flamboyant  coat 
of  arms.  I  glanced  at  the  heavily-barred,  heavily- 
mullioned  window,  at  the  old  comfortless  furniture, 
at  the  faded  curtains,  at  the  antique  porcelain  stove, 
and  I  received  an  impression  of  a  grandeur  that  had 
departed,  and  which  at  its  best  had  never  been  very 
refined ;  but  for  the  life  of  me  I  could  not  extract 
one  idea  as  to  what  I  was  going  to  say  to  the  Queen 
of  Grimland. 

The  door  opened  and  a  little  woman  in  a  blue 
tea-gown  advanced  towards  me.     It  was  the  Queen. 

I  bowed.  She  offered  me  a  heavily-ringed  hand 
and  motioned  me  to  a  chair. 

"  What  is  this  message  the  King  sends  me  ?  " 
she  began. 

She  was  pale  but  composed,  and  to  my  fancy, 
was  ready  to  fly  into  a  violent  temper  if  she  thought 
I  was  likely  to  be  cowed  thereby. 

"  His  Majesty  desires  you  to  return  instantly  to 
the  Brun-varad,"  I  replied  firmly. 

She  opened  her  eyes  wide.  "  Is  that  all  ? " 
she  asked. 

"  That  is  the  sum  and  substance  of  the  message," 
I  said,  not  knowing  what  else  to  say. 

"  But — I  overheard  you  talking  with  Kreifel  in 
the  hall.  You  spoke  of  its  being  in  my  interest  to 
receive  you.  You  hinted  that  the  matter  was  one 
of   overwhelming    importance — that    it    would   be 


FROST   AND    FRIENDSHIP        93 

most  unwise  of  me  to  send  you  away  without  an 
audience." 

"  I  spoke  what  I  thought,"  I  repHed.  "  His 
Majesty  considers  it  most  important  that  you  should 
return  to  Weissheim  without  delay." 

She  smiled  scornfully. 

"  And  did  he  so  far  take  you  into  his  confidence 
as  to  give  any  particular  reason  why  my  return  was 
so  extremely  desirable  ?  " 

"  He  did,"  I  replied  gravely.  "  He  spoke  of 
weighty  political  reasons  which  rendered  your 
absence  from  the  Brun-varad  most  undesirable  at 
the  present  time.  He  also  said  that  if  you  returned 
immediately  he  would  consider  any  griveances  he 
might  hold  against  you  cancelled — that  he  was 
prepared  to  forgive  everything." 

At  this  rather  daring  statement  of  mine  the  Queen 
rose  hurriedly  from  her  chair,  her  eyes  flashing,  her 
little  hands  clenched,  and  advanced  wrathfully 
towards  me.  I  sat  where  I  was,  outwardly  calm, 
and  meeting  her  gaze  unflinchingly. 

Suddenly  her  manner  altered  and  she  broke  into 
a   peal   of   mocking   laughter. 

"  He  said  he  would  forgive  me  everything  ?  " 
she  repeated. 

"  He  pledged  his  word  of  honour,"  I  affirmed. 

"  Well,  Mr.  Saunders,"  she  said  bitterly,  "  go 
and  tell  your  friend  the  King,  that  I  am  not  in  any 
particular  need  of  his  forgiveness  ;  that  I  am  very 
comfortable  at  Heldersburg  ;  and  that  I  shall  return 
to  the  Brun-varad  at  my  own  convenience — which 
may  be  a  week  hence  or  may  be  a  fortnight." 


94        FROST   AND    FRIENDSHIP 

"  His  Majesty  will  be  very  disappointed." 

She  laughed  again. 

"  His  Majesty  will  get  over  his  disappointment," 
she  said.  "  There  are  feminine  attractions  enough 
at  Weissheim  without  me.  There  is  his  precious 
governess,  Miss " 

"  Your  Majesty  !  " 

"  Don't  lose  your  temper,  Mr.  Saunders.  Kings 
are  not  invariably  models  of  virtue,  and  dear  Karl 
is  quite  capable'  off  making  a  fool  of  himself.  Forgive 
me  !  did  he  say  ?  He  did  not  perchance  ask  me  to 
forgive  him  ?  " 

"There  is  no  such  request  in  his  message,"  I 
replied  drily. 

"  Bah  !  "  she  cried  angrily.  "  I  am  sick  of  his 
canting  hypocrisy.  You  have  had  my  answer ; 
kindly  convey  it  to  him  word  for  word." 

Things  were  going  badly  but  I  refused  to  accept 
defeat    without    a    further    effort. 

"  I  fear  he  will  not  consider  your  answer  final," 
I  remarked. 

"  I  don't  care  that " — she  snapped  her  fingers 
vulgarly  — "  whether  he  considers  it  final  or 
not." 

"  Your  Majesty  does  not  quite  comprehend  my 
meaning,"  I  threw  a  little  mystery  into  my  tone 
and  was  rewarded  by  a  passing  gleam  of  apprehen- 
sion in  the  Queen's  eyes. 

"  Then  kindly  make  your  meaning  clear." 

"  I  mean,"  I  said,  *'  that  his  Majesty  is  determined 
that  you  should  return  at  once  to  Weissheim." 

"  He  will  use  force  ?     He  will  send  a  regiment  of 


FROST    AND    FRIENDSHIP        95 

soldiers  here  to  fetch  me  ?  "  and  there  was  an  ill- 
concealed  eagerness  in  her  tone. 

I  remembered  what  the  King  had  said  on  this 
subject,  and  his  remarks  about  his  wife's  theatrical 
instincts. 

"  He  would  certainly  not  do  so — by  day,"  I  repUed. 

"  He  would  send  and  fetch  me  by  force  at  night ! 
The  coward  !  " 

I  hung  my  head. 

"  I  did  not  say  so,"  I  muttered. 

"  Nonsense,"  she  cried,  "  I  can  read  you  like  a 
book.  He  said  he  would  send  and  seize  me  by  night. 
And  what  did  he  say  he  would  do  then  ?  " 

I  hesitated  intentionally. 

"  His  Majesty  was  very  angry,"  I  said  at  length. 

"  What  did  he  say  he  would  do  ?  "  she  almost 
screamed  at  me. 

"  His  Majesty  was  very  angry,"  I  repeated.  "  He 
said  things  which  he  doubtless  did  not  mean.  I 
would  rather,  with  your  Majesty's  permission,  re- 
strain from  repeating  them." 

She  was  genuinely  alarmed  now.  There  was 
no  misreading  the  frightened  glare  in  her  eyes  or  the 
nervous  plucking  of  her  tiny  fingers  at  the  lace  border 
of  the  blue  tea-gown. 

"  You  have  not  my  permission,"  she  said  breath- 
lessly. "  I  command  you  to  speak.  What  did  he 
say  ?  " 

"  His  Majesty  was  very  angry " 

"  You've  said  that  three  times,"  she  screamed. 

"  It  appears,"  I  went  on,  undismayed,  "that you 
overheard  a  private  conversation  of  his  Majesty's 


96        FROST   AND    FRIENDSHIP 

in  the  Schweigend-kammer  by  concealing  yourself 
in  the  shaft  of  the  Zaubertisch " 

"  Go  on." 

"  His  Majesty  was  very — ^This  annoyed  his  Majesty 
exceedingly.  He  said  '  If  she  plays  me  any  more 
pranks  like  this,  Saunders,  I  shall  put  her  in  the  shaft 
of  the  Zaubertisch,  and  leave  her  there  for  a  day  or 
two.'  Doubtless  his  Majesty,  who  is  a  most  humane 
man,  did  not  really " 

*'  Stop,"  she  cried,  one  hand  raised  dramatically 
aloft  and  the  other  pressed  against  her  heart.  "  I 
have  heard  enough.  He  is  a  monster,  an  inhuman 
monster.  He  would  fetch  me  by  night — by  night 
mind  you,  so  that  the  people  should  not  see  his  poor 
tyrannised  wife —  and  starve  me  to  death  in  that 
miserable  funnel  —  Heavens  !  it's  too  horrible  to 
think  of." 

"  Do  not  think  of  it,"  I  said  soothingly.  "  Think 
rather  of  his  Majesty's  promise  to  let  bygones  be 
bygones  if  you  return  at  once." 

"  I  don't  understand  it  at  all,"  she  went  on  in  dis- 
tressed perplexity.  "  The  King  must  have  been 
very  angry — he  is  not  what  I  call  a  strong  man." 

"  He  is  not,"  I  admitted  confidentially,  "  and 
therefore  all  the  more  dangerous.  When  a  weak 
man  is  thoroughly  moved  he  is  sure  to  fly  to  the 
extreme  of  violence.  Believe  me,  in  pressing  you  to 
comply  with  this  request  I  considered  I  was  acting 
in  your  interest  quite  as  much  as  the  King's." 

She  looked  at  me  curiously. 

"  Why  should  you  consider  my  interests  at  all  ?  " 
she  inquired. 


FROST   AND    FRIENDSHIP        97 

"It  is  impossible  to  know  your  Majesty  and  not 
desire  to  serve  you." 

"  You  are  a  courtier,"  she  said,  smiling  in  obvious 
pleasure. 

"  I  am  a  man." 

"  Well,  I  will  come.  Ah  Mr.  Saunders,  if  you  know 
the  misery  I  endure  mated  to  this  weak,  pleasure- 
loving  monarch,  you  would  pity  me.  A  woman 
needs  a  man  for  a  husband,  not  a  brainless,  jibing 
buffoon." 

"  You  have  my  sincerest  sympathy." 

"  Yes  I  will  come,"  she  went  on,"  because  it  is 
my  duty.  Karl  is  my  husband  and  he  requires  my 
presence  at  Weissheim.  Little  consideration  though 
he  deserves  at  my  hands  he  shall  have  one  more 
chance.  As  a  patriotic  Grimlander  I  desire  peace 
and  tranquillity  for  my  country — but  let  him  beware 
The  sceptre  is  slipping  from  his  grasp  and  a  stronger 
than  he  is  ready  to  seize  it.  The  country  needs  a 
firm  ruler  not  an  inconstant  flippant  fool ;  a  man  of 
strong  moral  fibre,  not  a  scoffer  who  treats  all  things 
from  religion  to  the  revolutionary  efforts  of  his  ene- 
mies as  an  amusing  jest." 

"  You  are  perfectly  right,"  I  said.  "  His  Majesty 
needs  a  great  deal  of  moral  stiffening,  and  if  there  is 
one  person  in  the  world  capable  of  giving  it  him,  it 
is  you." 

"Oh  I  have  tried  and  tried,"  she  exclaimed, 
"till  I  am  sick  of  it  all.  I  will  make  one  more  effort 
to  brace  his  sluggish  spirit,  and  if  I  fail,  well — the  de- 
luge will  come,  that  is  all." 

"  Your  Majesty  has  a  noble  soul,"  I  murmured. 

G 


98        FROST   AND    FRIENDSHIP 

"  Ah,  you  understand  me,"  she  cried,  well-pleased  ; 
"it  is  pleasant  to  be  understood — especially  when 
one  is  not  used  to  it.  I  will  give  orders  for  a  sleigh 
to  be  ready  in  half  an  hour.  Fraulein  von  Helder 
will  accompany  me.    Cannot  I  give  you  a  seat  too  ?  " 

"  I  should  esteem  it  a  proud  privilege." 


CHAPTER   VIII 

DURING  my  half  hour's  wait  in  the  Castle 
Library  I  was  the  prey  to  what  novelists 
call  mixed  emotions.  To  begin  with,  I  was  elated 
at  the  success  of  my  mission.  I  felt  that  I  had 
acted  up  to  the  flattering  estimate  of  my  ability 
which  the  King  must  have  formed  in  order  to  en- 
trust this  delicate  service  into  my  hands.  On  the 
other  hand  I  was  not  quite  comfortable  in  my  mind 
as  to  the  rectitude  of  the  means  I  had  employed  in 
achieving  the  desired  conclusion.  I  had  pledged 
the  King's  word  of  honour  that  on  his  wife's  im- 
mediate return  he  would  forgive  and  forget  her 
questionable  behaviour — which  I  had  not  the  slight- 
est right  to  do.  I  had  put  into  his  Majesty's  mouth 
the  most  horrible  threats,  of  which  he  was  quite 
incapable,  and  for  which  sooner  or  later  his  fiery 
spouse  would  inevitably  demand  an  explanation. 
Thirdly — and  this  was  the  most  serious  of  my  de- 
linquencies— I  had,  in  order  to  insure  my  success, 
adopted  towards  her  Majesty  a  tone  of  veiled  senti- 
mentality. She  was  a  vain,  foolish  woman,  and  to 
her  foolish  vanity  I  had  deemed  myself  justified  in 
appealing.  My  success  had  been  rapid  and  remark- 
able and  I  only  prayed  that  my  doubtful  methods 


100       FROST   AND    FRIENDSHIP 

might  not  recoil  on  my  own  head.  She  had  accepted 
my  role  as  the  humble  but  ardent  admirer.  What 
an  appalling  thing  if  she  started  encouraging  me  ! 
To  be  wooed  by  a  Queen — a  married  Queen — was  fas- 
cinating in  theory  and  in  theory  alone.  Then  I  thought 
of  poor  old  Karl — for  I  could  not  help  regarding 
him  more  as  a  personal  friend  than  a  monarch. 
If  ever  there  was  an  "  homme  incompris  "  it  was  he. 
Because  he  was  calm  in  the  face  of  provocation,  the 
Queen  thought  him  weak.  Because  he  looked  at 
life  through  humorous  spectacles,  she  thought  him 
insincere  and  a  buffoon.  His  love  of  sport  and  his 
taste  for  gaiety  were  in  her  eyes  but  symptoms  of 
an  inconstant,  pleasure-loving  disposition.  It  was 
true  of  course,  that  in  his  way,  he  was  just  as  bad  a 
husband  as  she  a  wife.  But  that  was  entirely  the 
fault  of  his  temperament.  Most  women  would  have 
cared  for  him.  He  was  humorous,  good-natured, 
and  better  still,  good-hearted.  He  was  a  devoted, 
romping  father,  an  indefatigable  worker  as  he  was  an 
untiring  sportsman.  Unfortunately  he  had  married 
one  of  those  women  who  justified  the  bracketing  of 
the  sex  with  the  dog  and  the  walnut  tree  in  the  popu- 
lar adage.  Had  he  bullied  his  wife,  she  would  have 
respected  him  ;  she  would  quite  conceivably  have 
loved  him.  Anyway,  I  reflected,  they  were  an  ill- 
assorted  couple,  and  my  sympathies,  three-fourths  of 
them  at  any  rate,  were  with  the  husband. 

When  the  Queen  returned  she  was  attired  in  a  neat 
check  travelling  dress  and  she  brought  the  Fraulein 
von  Helder  in  her  wake.  The  latter  favoured  me 
with  a  stiff  inclination  of  her  unattractive  head. 


FROST   AND    FRIENDSHIP       loi 

"  Come,  Mr.  Saunders,"  said  the  Queen.  "  We 
will  start  at  once,  please." 

On  going  to  the  door  we  found  a  pair-horse  sleigh 
awaiting  us.  A  smaller  sleigh  was  attached  behind 
into  which  a  couple  of  large  boxes  had  been  placed. 
Remembering  Lame  Peter's  paraphernalia  I  collected 
the  various  articles  of  my  disguise  and  stowed  them 
beside  the  boxes  in  the  luggage  sleigh. 

"  Whatever  are  those  things  ?  "  asked  the  Queen. 

I  explained  briefly  how  they  had  come  into  my 
temporary  possession,  and,  as  the  matter  seemed  to 
interest  her  Majesty,  gave  a  detailed  account  of  my 
journey  to  Heldersburg. 

"  You  behaved  magnificently,"  said  the  Queen  with 
suppressed  enthusiasm.  "  You  displayed  great  re- 
source and  great  courage.  I  am  touched  to  think 
that  it  was  for  my  sake  you  made  those  efforts." 

I  felt  exceedingly  uncomfortable. 

"  I  conceived  it  to  be  my  duty  to  reach  your 
Majesty  somehow,"  I  replied,  "  and  the  opposition 
offered  to  my  mission  piqued  my  pride.  I  only 
trust  that  my  success  may  have  good  results  both  in 
its  immediate  and  ultimate  consequences." 

"  I  hope  so,  but  I  doubt  it,''  rephed  the  Queen. 
"  That  rests  with  my  husband." 

The  sun  had  gone  down  behind  the  mountains 
and  the  fall  in  the  temperature  was  very  noticeable. 
It  was  very  still  and  beautiful,  and  the  sky  was  full 
of  clear  cool  greens  and  pinks  and  yellows.  Suddenly 
I  noticed  the  Queen  bowing  to  right  and  left,  and 
looking  out,  I  saw  soldiers  saluting  at  either  side  of 
the  roadway     Then  I  saw  Max,  and  I  shall   never 


102       FROST    AND    FRIENDSHIP 

forget  his  look  of  anger  and  and  astonishment  as  his 
gaze  fell  upon  me.  Smiling  in  spite  of  myself,  I  raised 
my  cap,  and  in  another  moment  we  had  passed 
through  the  guardsmen  who  had  barred  my  first 
attempt  to  get  to  Heldersburg.  When  we  reached 
the  main  street  of  Weisheim  the  people  were  crowded 
in  great  numbers  at  the  side  of  the  road.  Peasants 
in  sheepskins,  merchants  and  professional  men  in 
furs,  soliders  in  smart  green  cloaks,  jostled  one 
another  at  the  edge  of  the  white  highway. 

"  The  Queen,  the  Queen  !  "  they  cried.  Hats  were 
lifted  and  the  sound  of  cheering  began.  The  further 
we  advanced  the  denser  grew  the  throng,  the  louder 
swelled  the  noise  of  their  acclaim.  It  was  like  a 
triumphal  procession,  and  though  I  felt  the  exhilara- 
ting power  of  the  situation  I  was  somewhat  at  a  loss 
to  comprehend  its  meaning.  As  for  the  Queen,  she 
was  transfigured  into  a  beautiful  gracious  woman  ; 
she  bowed  incessantly,  her  eyes  sparkled,  her  red  lips 
parted  in  a  beatific  smile.  Of  her  popularity  there 
was  little  doubt ;  of  her  love  of  popularity  none  at 
all.  As  we  passed  through  the  town  the  crowd 
gradually  thinned,  and  the  last  stage  of  our  journey 
was  performed  in  silence.  As  we  neared  the  Brun- 
varad  the  Queen's  face  grew  set  and  hard  again. 

On  reaching  the  Palace,  we  three  entered  the 
Hall  together.  The  King  was  there  dressed  in  high 
leggings,  and  wearing  a  brown  Norfolk  jacket  over 
a  woollen  sweater.  He  was  talking  to  a  man  I  had 
never  seen  before.  A  clean-shaven,  broad-browed 
man,  with  dark  piercing  eyes  and  a  restless  manner. 
They  rose  as  we  approached,  the  stranger  bowing. 


FROST   AND    FRIENDSHIP       103 

"  I  trust  you  have  enjoyed  your  excursion  to 
Heldersburg,"  said  the  King  formally. 

"  I  am  rather  tired,  thank  you,"  replied  the  Queen. 
"  I  shall  go  and  rest  before  diiiner." 

"  Quite  right,"  said  the  King.  "  Remember 
there  is  Mrs.  Van  Troeber's  dance  at  the  Pariser- 
hof  to-night." 

"  I  shall  not  go  there,"  said  the  Queen  curtly, 
and  she  and  the  Fraulein  mounted  the  stairs. 

"  How  did  you  do  it  ? "  asked  the  King  the  moment 
the  ladies  were  out  of  earshot.  I  glanced  involun- 
tarily at  the  stranger,  hesitating  to  speak  freely  before 
him. 

"  Oh,  permit  me,"  said  the  King,  "  to  introduce 
to  you  Herr  Schneider,  the  celebrated  Vienna  detec- 
tive.    He  enjoys  my  fullest  confidence." 

"  Delighted  to  meet  you,  Mr.  Saunders,"  said  Herr 
Schneider  shaking  me  warmly  by  the  hand.  "  His 
Majesty  has  invited  me  here  for  purposes  of  investi- 
gation. It  seems  there  is  a  certain  amount  of  dis- 
content here  in  Weissheim  and  in  other  parts  of 
Grimland.  It  is  my  part  to  sound  the  depths  of 
that  discontent,  to  sort  out  the  sheep  from  the  goats, 
and  to  differentiate  the  black  goats  from  the  merely 
piebald."  He  spoke  very  glibly  and  I  felt  an  instinc- 
tive dislike  for  the  man  growing  up  within  me.  He 
was  of  medium  height  and  rather  stout,  and  his  face 
was  unmistakably  a  clever  one.  What  I  disliked 
about  him  was  his  restless  manner.  His  large  dark 
eyes  were  never  in  repose — they  were  always  search- 
ing, questioning,  weighing.  His  hands  too — broad, 
fat  hands — were  never  for  a  moment  still.     He  gesti- 


104      FROST    AND    FRIENDSHIP 

culated  freely  when  he  spoke,  and  when  he  hstened 
fingered  his  face  incessantly.  He  looked  like  a  man 
who  had  seen  much,  and  that  mostly  evil. 

I  narrated  the  circumstances  of  my  journey  to 
Heldersburg,  and  knowing  that  the  King  had  a 
keen  eye  for  the  humorous,  dwelt  as  much  as  possible 
on  the  comic  side  of  the  affair,  the  quaint  disguise  I 
had  been  led  to  adopt,  and  the  blank  look  of  dismay 
on  young  Max's  face  when  he  saw  me  driving  back 
in  the  Queen's  sleigh.  To  my  surprise  the  King  did 
not  even  smile. 

"  It  was  a  fine  piece  of  work,  Saunders,"  he  said 
simply. 

"  Splendid,  splendid,"  murmured  the  detective 
stroking  his  blue  chin. 

"  Look  here,  Saunders,"  pursued  the  King,  "  I 
am  immensely  pleased  with  the  result  of  your  efforts. 
The  Queen's  return  is  a  great  relief  to  me.  Rumours 
had  been  spread  of  a  serious  quarrel  between  us, 
and  I  am  told  an  impromptu  out-of-doors  meeting 
was  held  in  the  town  this  afternoon  to  express  sym- 
pathy with  her  Majesty.  To  those  rumours  her 
return  has  given  the  lie.  My  wife  understands  the 
art  of  popularity  and  as  her  husband  I  come  in  for 
some  faint  reflection  of  the  popular  favour.  You 
perceive  the  high  motives  which  made  me  dread 
even  a  temporary  separation  from  the  wife  of  my 
bosom." 

"  They  cheered  us  as  we  passed  through  Weis- 
heim,"  I  said. 

"  They  cheered  the  Queen,"  corrected  King  Karl. 
"  They  should  have  cheered  you.     You  were  the 


FROST   AND    FRIENDSHIP       105 

hero,  the  man  who  risked  his  hfe  to  do  a  service  to 
his  friend." 

"  You  are  gracious,  sire.  In  truth  I  don't  think 
I  ran  a  very  great  risk." 

"  I  beg  to  disagree  with  you,"  said  the  King, 
laying  a  kindly  hand  on  my  shoulder.  "  Had  the 
amiable  Fritz  suspected  who  it  was  inside  Lame 
Peter's  shaggy  coat,  you  would  not  be  sitting  here 
amusing  us  with  the  recital  of  your  experiences. 
By  the  way,  were  they  really  firing  at  dummies 
across  the  ravine  ?  " 

"  I  did  not  hear  any  sound  of  firing." 

"  I  should  suggest,"  said  Schneider,  "  that  your 
Majesty  transfers  his  first  regiment  of  Guards  to 
some  other  salubrious  neighbourhood. 

"  I  used  to  be  proud  of  my  Guards  once,"  said 
the  King  bitterly.  "  I  was  young  and  full  of  illu- 
sion, and  I  thought  them  a  fine  body  of  men.  Now 
I  know  what  they  are — a  fine  pack  of  wolves.  Still, 
I  am  fond  of  animals,  and  it  would  be  painful  to  me 
to  part  with  them." 

"  Your  Majesty  will  surely  not  hesitate  on  this 
point  ?  "  pressed  the  detective. 

"  There  are  good  men  in  the  Guards,"  said  the 
King  pensively,  "  there  is  young  Drechsler  and  Major 
von  Stromling,  loyal  men  and  true." 

"  Your  Majesty  mentions  two  names,"  sneered 
Schneider. 

"I  mention  the  first  two  that  occur  to  me,"  retorted 
the  King  sharply.  "  No,  if  I  cannot  win  the  loyalty 
of  the  Guards  it  will  be  because  I  do  not  deserve 
it.     The  men  were  merely  obeying  their  officers  in 


io6      FROST   AND    FRIENDSHIP 

stopping  my  messenger  this  afternoon.  They  were 
not  to  blame.  The  man  who  was  responsible  was 
my  cousin  Fritz." 

"  Is  it  not  possible  to  get  rid  of  him  ?  "  I  asked. 

"  You  do  not  use  the  expression  '  get  rid  of ' 
in  an  Eastern  sense  I  hope,"  said  the  King. 

"  No,"  I  answered  laughing  ;  "  I  merely  meant 
that  his  sphere  of  usefulness  might  be  transferred 
elsewhere." 

King  Karl  shook  his  head  with  the  air  of  one  who 
had  considered  the  matter  and  formed  his  opinion. 

"  No,"  he  said.  "  The  broad-shouldered  little 
gentleman  is  a  firebrand.  If  he  is  going  to  commit 
an  act  of  incendiarism  I  prefer  to  be  within  reach 
of  the  flames." 

"  Your  Majesty,"  broke  in  Schneider  impatiently, 
"  absolutely  refuses  to  do  anything.  I  must  say 
that  I  call  it  a  dangerous  policy  of  laissez-faire." 

"  And  I,"  retorted  the  King,  "  call  it  a  wise  policy 
of  masterly  inactivity.  Come,  we  will  not  quarrel 
over  a  phrase.  I  hope  both  of  you  gentlemen  are 
going  to  Mrs.  Van  Troeber's  dance  to-night." 

"  I  shall  be  very  pleased  to  go,"  replied  the  de- 
tective, "  in  the  course  of  my  professional 
duty." 

"  And  I  in  the  course  of  my  search  for  pleasure, 
if  I  am  invited,"  I  said. 

"  You  are  invited  right  enough,"  said  the  King. 
"  We  do  not  attend  the  ordinary  hotel  weekly 
dances,  but  a  party  from  the  Brun-varad  frequently 
graces  private  balls  given  by  privileged  individuals 
such  as  Mrs.  Van  Troeber.    Thus  you  see,  my  dear 


FROST   AND    FRIENDSHIP       107 

Saunders,  snobbishness,  like  the  '  pinus  Alpestris,' 
flourishes  at  exceedingly  great  altitudes." 

So  saying  the  King  rose,  leaving  me  and  Herr 
Schneider  alone  together. 

"  An  extraordinary  person,"  said  my  companion 
with  a  gesture  in  the  direction  of  the  departed 
monarch. 

"  In  a  sense,  yes,"  I  replied.  "  But  of  how  few 
people  could  one  say  anything  different." 

"  True,"  returned  the  detective  glibly.  "  Your 
reflection  is  commonplace,  but  proves  that  you  have 
a  discerning  eye  for  character.  We  are  all  extra- 
ordinary in  some  particular,  and  doubtless  in  your 
eyes  I  myself  seem  far  from  ordinary." 

"  I  should  say  your  ability  was  far  from  ordinary," 
I  replied,  not  from  politeness  but  because  it  seemed 
the  natural  thing  to  say. 

"  You  are  perfectly  right,"  he  said  easily.  "  And 
I  was  perfectly  right  in  saying  that  you  have  a  dis- 
cerning eye.  We  have  evidently  this  much  in  com- 
mon, that  we  are  frank  in  our  speech  and  impervious 
to  compliments." 

"  I  am  afraid  you  have  the  advantage  of  me  in  the 
latter  respect,"  I  said.     "  I  love  compliments." 

"  You  are  younger  than  I.  When  you  are  my 
age  you  will  have  seen  deeper  into  things,  you  will 
know  that  a  compliment — even  a  sincere  one — 
merely  means  that  a  small  portion  of  somebody's 
brain  is  momentarily  occupied  in  favourably  con- 
sidering something  you  have  said  or  done." 

"  But  I  like  to  give  occupation  to  even  a  small 
portion  of  other  people's  brains,"  I  objected. 


io8      FROST   AND    FRIENDSHIP 

"  It  may  be  useful  in  practice,"  admitted  Schnei- 
der, "  for  one's  career  for  instance  ;  but  as  a  senti- 
ment it  is  absurd.  Fame,  which  is  the  amalgamated 
compliment  of  the  multitude,  is  a  surprisingly  empty 
thing  when  you  come  to  look  into  it.  Put  yourself 
into  the  position  of  an  admirer.  Who  are  your 
heroes — Napoleon,  Washington,  Bismarck  ?  In 
what  respect  are  you  the  better  for  their  .  having 
lived,  or  they  the  better  for  your  admiration.  It 
is  the  pleasures  and  pains  of  life  that  really  count, 
not  the  sentiment.  A  bilious  headache  or  an  aching 
tooth  is  a  greater  calamity  than  a  lost  battle  of  a 
century  ago.  A  good  dinner  or  an  increase  in  one's 
income  affords  one  greater  happiness  than  a  favour- 
able notice  in  a  time-serving  newspaper. 

"  I  feel  like  that  sometimes,"  I  said,  "  when  I 
do  I  knock  off  pastry  and  bitter  beer." 

Schneider  laughed. 

"  Ha  !  "  he  cried,  "  you,  too,  are  a  materialist, 
though'not  quite  such  a  good  one  as  myself.  Happi- 
ness, which  is  the  one  thing  desirable,  is  a  condition 
of  the  brain.  The  brain  is  part  of  the  nervous 
system.  Through  the  nerves  one  receives  sensa- 
tions, pleasant  or  the  reverse.  If  one  takes  care 
that  these  sensations  are  uniformly  pleasant,  one 
achieves  that  condition  of  mind  which  spells  happi- 
ness." 

"  And  you  are  happy  ?  "  I  enquired. 

Schneider's  restless  eyes  concentrated  themselves 
on  me  with  a  fierce  stare,  and  he  made  a  gesture  of 
impatience. 

"  Happy  !  "  he  cried  with  bitter  inconsistence  ; 


FROST   AND    FRIENDSHIP       109 

"  There  is  no  such  thing  as  happiness.  One  cannot 
be  happy  without  self-consciousness.  Unless  one 
analyses  the  condition  of  one's  mind  one  merely 
leads  the  life  of  an  animal,  eating  and  drinking  and 
pleasuring,  in  a  vague  unreasoning  way,  which  is  no 
more  happiness  than  were  the  long-forgotten  days 
of  our  undeveloped  babyhood.  And  yet  if  we  are 
constantly  analysing  our  condition,  if  we  are  con- 
stantly asking  ourselves,  is  this  pleasure  ?  is  my 
mind  in  a  state  of  pleasurable  activity  or  comfortable 
repose  ?  assuredly  there  is  no  joy  there.  Therefore 
I  say  there  is  no  such  thing  as  happiness." 

"  It  seems  to  me,"  I  replied,  "  that  it  is  desirable 
to  hit  the  mean  between  unconscious  animation 
and  morbid  introspection." 

"  Perfection  is  always  desirable,"  he  retorted. 
"  It  is  likewise  invariably  unattainable.  A  cup  of 
hot  coffee  is  pleasant,  and  so  is  a  glass  of  iced  cham- 
pagne. The  happy  mean  which  you  advocate  would 
be  a  lukewarm  drink  —  which  is  an  abomin- 
ation." 

"Pardon,"  I  replied.  "You  are  confusing  the 
mean  between  two  excellences,  which  is  bad,  with 
the  mean  between  two  evils,  which  is  good." 

Schneider  rose  and  walked  rapidly  about  the  room 
apparently  seeking  for  an  answer. 

"  Mr.  Saunders,"  he  said  abruptly. 

"  Yes." 

"  You  will,  of  course,  mention  my  profession  to 
no  one.  I  am  supposed  to  be  one  of  his  Majesty's 
ordinary  guests." 

"  I  quite  understand." 


no      FROST   AND   FRIENDSHIP 

"  It  is  necessary  for  my  success  that  my  true 
vocation  should  remain  unsuspected." 

"  NaturaUy." 

"  Unfortunately  King  Karl  is  so  phenomenally 
indiscreet." 

"  His  indiscretion,"  I  interrupted,  "  is  mostly  on 
the  surface." 

My  remark  seemed  to  surprise  the  detective  con- 
siderably. 

"  I  wonder  if  you  are  right,"  he  muttered  at 
length.  "  You  seem  to  have  a  fair  share  of  perspica- 
city. Only,  if  you  are  right,  my  estimate  of  the 
King's  character  is  absolutely  wrong." 

"  Most  people,"  I  said  gently,  "  find  it  saves  time 
and  trouble  to  accept  my  statements  without  the 
trouble  of  verification." 


CHAPTER   IX 

THE  King,  Miss  Anchester,  Herr  Schneider  and 
myself  furnished  the  Brun-varad  contingent 
for  Mrs.  Van  Troeber's  ball  at  the  Pariserhof  that 
evening. 

The  Queen,  who  had  refrained  from  putting  in  an 
appearance  at  dinner,  pleaded  fatigue  and  a  slight 
headache  as  an  excuse  for  her  absence. 

The  King,  whose  digestion  was  as  boyish  as  his 
spirits,  insisted  on  an  early  start,  and  so  informal 
were  his  tastes  that  he  obtained  our  sanction  to 
traverse  the  half-mile  which  separated  the  scene 
of  the  festivities  from  the  Royal  dwelling,  on  foot. 
Accordingly  we  slipped  on  snow-boots  over  our 
pumps,  donned  warm  cloaks  and  overcoats,  and 
sallied  forth  into  the  stadit,  silent  night.  It  was 
extremely  cold,  but  the  air  was  dry  and  very  still, 
and  as  the  snow  crunched  and  squeaked  beneath  our 
feet,  I  felt  my  spirits  rising  in  a  way  they  had  never 
risen  when  journeying  to  a  dance  in  London.  Soon 
we  were  amongst  the  lighted  streets  of  Weissheim, 
and  an  occasional  passenger  would  recognise  the 
King's  burly  form,  and  doff  his  hat  with  a  low- 
growled   "  Vivat !    Majestat." 

We  entered  the  Pariserhof  by  a  side  door,  and 
were  conducted  to  the  ball-room,  where  Mrs.  Van 


112      FROST   AND    FRIENDSHIP 

Troeber,  a  handsome  American  lady  with  a  Parisian 
gown  and  a  blazing  wealth  of  diamonds,  received  us 
with  the  restrained  cordiality  due  to  the  denizens  of 
a   Royal  Palace. 

The  ball-room  was  a  large  and  very  handsome 
apartment,  and  its  normally  rich  decoration  was 
augmented  by  a  lavish  display  of  flowers  and 
greenery. 

I  never  was  a  dancing  man.  To  be  quite  frank 
I  always  regard  this  particular  form  of  entertain- 
ment as  a  deplorable  waste  both  of  means  and 
energy.  All  the  same  I  was  constrained  to  admit 
that  the  Pariserhof  ball-room  presented  a  spectacle 
which  was  well  worth  tramping  half  a  mile  of  frozen 
snow  to  see. 

The  guests  were  mainly  English  and  Americans, 
and  a  singularly  healthy  and  pleasant-looking  crowd. 
The  women  were  as  well-dressed  as  at  any  function 
I  have  ever  attended  in  London,  and  the  jewellery 
displayed  would  have  sufficed  to  materially  reduce 
the  National  Debt  of  Grimland.  Add  to  this  an 
excellent  band,  a  briUiant  but  soft  scheme  of  light- 
ing, an  exceptionally  high  standard  of  dancing,  and 
you  will  pardon  the  mildly  voluptuous  thrill  with 
which  I  regarded  the  refined  animation  of  the  scene. 
I  noticed  the  Grand  Duke  Fritz  leaning  his  broad 
back  against  a  gilded  pilaster,  his  eyes  following 
the  dancers  as  if  seeking  for  some  one  he  could  not 
find.  I  saw  Max  attired  in  faultless  evening  dress 
with  an  immaculate  white  waistcoat,  conducting  a 
splendid  young  woman  with  the  shoulders  of  a 
goddess  and  an  epoch-making  ball  dress  to  a  thickly- 


FROST   AND    FRIENDSHIP      113 

flowered  alcove,  and — profanity  of  profanities — 
yawning  with  the  shameless  ennui  of  his  gilded 
blase  youth.  I  caught  a  glimpse  of  his  sister,  as  she 
waltzed  past  me  with  the  light  earth-scorning 
energy  of  the  perfect  dancer,  fresh,  frankly  raptur- 
ous, the  epitome  of  fearless,  loveable  girlhood  ;  a 
figure  to  restore  one's  shaken  faith  in  human  happi- 
ness, and  turn  to  folly  the  unhealthy  morahsings 
of  Herr  Schneider's  morbid  brain.  I  turned  to 
Miss  Anchester  who  stood  beside  me,  a  tall,  stately 
figure  in  white,  a  grey-eyed  self-possessed  spectator, 
with  a  look  of  quiet  enjoyment  on  her  clear-cut 
features. 

"  Are  you  engaged  this  dance  ?  "  I  asked. 

"  My  programme  speaks  for  itself,"  she  replied, 
handing  me  an  unmarked  card. 

"  May   I   have  the   pleasure  ?  " 

"Certainly." 

We  had  hardly  started  dancing  when  the  music 
came   to    a    stop. 

"  How  typical  of  life,"  I  remarked. 

My  partner  knitted  her  brows  as  if  in  annoyance. 
"  I  do  not  follow  your  train  of  thought,"  she  said, 
after  a  moment's  pause. 

"  Naturally,"  I  retorted,  "  my  thoughts  have  no 
train." 

"  In  other  words,  you  speak  without  thinking." 

"  Almost  invariably.  One  thereby  avoids  gram- 
matical accuracy  and  all  suspicion  of  intellectuality." 

"  The  latter,  of  course,  must  be  very  difficult." 

"  That  reminds  me,"  I  said. 

"  What  reminds  you  of  what  ?  " 

H 


114      FROST   AND   FRIENDSHIP  ' 

"  Your  caustic  remark  reminds  me  of  a  letter." 

"  You  are  pleased  to  be  cryptic." 

"  If  you  will  condescend  to  accompany  me  to  a 
secluded  spot,  I  shall  be  pleased  to  be  explanatory." 

We  walked  in  silence  to  an  unoccupied  settee  in 
a  palm-decorated  recess. 

"  When  we  had  that  little  tumble  this  morning," 
I  began,  as  we  seated  ourselves,  "  a  letter  fell  out 
of  your  pocket." 

"  Oh  !  "  exclaimed  Miss  Anchester.  "  I  could 
not  imagine  where  it  had  got  to." 

"  Have  you  read  it  ?  "  I  inquired. 

"  Yes." 

"So   have   I." 

At  my  admission  her  cheeks  flamed  red,  her  eyes 
glowered  unspeakable  contempt,  her  lips  trembled 
to  pronounce — I  could  swear — the  word  "  cad." 

"  Was  that  in  accordance  with  your  usual  habits 
or  merely  a  solitary  instance  of  ungentlemanli- 
ness  ?  "she  asked  icily. 

"  Will  you  condescend  to  hear  my  explanation  ?  " 
I  countered,  smiling  in  spite  of  myself  at  her  bitter, 
but  perfectly  natural  resentment. 

"  I  will  hear  what  you  have  to  say  on  the  subject," 
she  said,  stiffly. 

"  When  that  letter  fell  from  your  pocket  this 
morning,  you  were  in  a  state  of  unconsciousness. 
For  safety  I  put  the  letter  into  my  own  pocket, 
meaning  to  restore  it  to  you  at  the  first  opportunity. 
Naturally,  being  a  man,  I  forgot  all  about  it.  After 
lunch  a  letter  from  my  mother  arrived  for  me.  I 
was  interrupted  in  its  perusal,  and  put  it  back_half- 


FROST    AND    FRIENDSHIP       115 

read  into  my  pocket.  Later  on  I  took  out  your 
letter  under  the  impression  that  it  was  my  own. 
The  handwriting  was  the  same,  and  I  had  read  a 
good  portion  of  it  before  discovering  that  it  was  not 
intended  for  my  eyes.  I  don't  know  whether  that 
sounds  very  plausible."  I  went  on  looking  straight 
into  her  grey  eyes,"  but  whether  it  does  or  does 
not,  it  is  the  truth,  and  as  such  I  must  ask  you  to 
believe  it." 

The  high  colour  had  gradually  subsided  from 
her  cheek,  and  the  look  of  wrath  melted  into  one  of 
disdain. 

"  Of  course  I  believe  you — implicitly,"  she  said. 
'*  Still  it  was  not  very — very  intellectual,  was  it  ?  " 

"  I  suppose  it  seems  very  foolish,"  I  said  ;  "  but 
it  was  the  handwriting  that  caused  the  error — that 
and  my  own  absent-mindedness.  Still,  I  don't  see 
that  any  harm  has  been  done.  My  reading  the  letter 
has  at  any  rate  cleared  up  much  that  was  difficult  to 
understand." 

"  I  don't  follow  you." 

"  I  appear  to  be  very  unintelligible  to-day.  I 
mean  that  your  conduct  towards  me  has  been 
explained." 

"  My  conduct  towards  you  !  " 

"  Yes ;  you  cannot  deny  that  acting  on  my 
mother's  extraordinary  suggestion  you  have  adopted 
towards  me  a  tone  of  brusque  comment  and  critical 
acerbity  which  was  hardly  the  normal  behaviour 
of  a  young  lady  towards  a  man  she  had  never  met 
before,  and  who  was  some  years  her  senior." 

"  Indeed  !  " 


ii6      FROST    AND    FRIENDSHIP 

"Take  the  case  of  that  incident  on  the  Kastel 
run  this  morning.  I  was  fortunate  enough  to 
render  you  a  service — trivial  enough,  no  doubt — 
but  one  which  would  have  merited  some  slight 
expression  of  gratitude  had  you  not  so  far  fallen  in 
with  my  mother's  ridiculous  request  as  to  take  up 
an  unnatural,  and,  I  have  no  doubt,  unpalatable 
role." 

"  I  humbly  crave  your  forgiveness,"  she  said, 
mockingly.  "  At  great  personal  risk  you  save  me 
the  certainty  of  a  terrible  accident.  Had  you 
not  stood  your  ground  like  a  hero,  and  exerted  on 
my  behalf  the  skill  and  energy  of  a  finished  athlete, 
I  should  have  dashed  over  David  to  the  certainty 
of  a  maiming,  perhaps  fatal  fall.  And  yet  so  callous 
is  my  heart,  so  devoid  of  the  ordinary  instincts  of 
gratitude,  that  I  maintain  unmoved  my  slighting, 
snubbing  role,  and  reward  my  noble  preserver  with 
no  more  thanks  than  a  grudging  admission  that 
another  might  conceivably  not  have  acted  as  he  had 
done." 

The  tone  in  which  these  remarks  were  delivered 
only  just  saved  them  from  being  a  deadly  insult. 
And  yet,  making  allowance  for  rhetorical  exaggera- 
tion, they  were  little  more  than  the  actual  truth,  and 
the  manner  in  which  she  had  turned  to  scorn  my 
modest  plaint  for  an  unthanked  service,  was  almost 
brutal  in  its  effective  disdain.  I  know  it  made  me 
very   angry. 

"  Very  well,"  I  said  rising,  "  we  will  leave  the 
matter  there.  It  appears  you  rather  misunder- 
stood me — the  fault  no  doubt  was  mine." 


FROST    AND    FRIENDSHIP       117 

The  music  had  started  again,  and  I  offered  my 
arm  to  my  companion  with  the  intention  of  re-seeking 
the  ball-room. 

"  One  moment,"  she  said.  "  I  have  heard  your 
explanation — hear  mine.  I  met  your  mother  some 
years  ago  in  London — to  be  precise,  in  Bermondsey, 
where  we  worked  together  in  a  common  Charity. 
Since  then  I  have  visited  your  mother's  house  and 
dined  with  her  more  than  once,  but  on  each  occasion 
you  were  away  from  home.  When  you  decided  to 
come  out  here,  your  mother,  knowing  that  I  was 
filling  an  engagement  as  Governess  to  the  Royal 
children,  and  foreseeing  that  we  should  be  to  a 
certain  extent,  thrown  together,  wrote  to  me  giving 
her  view  of  your  character,  and  asking  me  to  try 
and  reduce  what  she  considered  your  somewhat 
inflated  opinion  of  your  own  abilities.  I  have  a 
great  respect  for  your  mother,  and  I  did,  and  shall 
do,  my  best  to  carry  out  her  instructions." 

At  the  conclusion  of  her  explanation.  Miss  Anches- 
ter  indulged  in  a  merry  and  perfectly  natural  laugh. 
I  concluded  she  was  climbing  down. 

"  My  mother  is  a  very  good  woman,"  I  said, 
"  and  not  in  most  respects  an  unwise  one.  Never- 
theless she  has,  to  use  a  vulgarism,  a  bee  in  her 
bonnet,  a  large,  fussy,  disquieting  bee.  She  is 
under  the  delusion  that  I  am  a  mass  of  conceit,  and 
to  eradicate  this  hypothetical  defect  in  my  character 
she  is  prepared  to  go  any  length,  even  to  the  extent 
of  imposing  this  extremely  distasteful  mission  on  you." 

"  Who  said  it  was  distasteful  ?  "  queried  Miss 
Anchester  with   another  laugh. 


ii8      FROST    AND    FRIENDSHIP 

"  I  cannot  imagine  it  to  be  otherwise,"  I  said. 
"  And  now  we  have  had  this  Uttle  explanation  I 
trust  you  will  take  an  unbiassed  and  more  favour- 
able view  of  my  character.'* 

"  Your  value  my  opinion  ?  " 

"  I  value  everybody's  opinion.  I  do  not  care 
to  appear  before  the  world  in  the  guise  of  a  puffed-up 
braggart." 

"  You  are  not  conscious  of  being  in  any  way  con- 
ceited ?  "  she  inquired,  still  smiling. 

I  shrugged  my  shoulders. 

"  We  are  none  of  us  perfect,"  I  replied.  "  A 
good  opinion  of  one's  self  is  a  prevalent  fault,  and 
not  a  bad  one  either.  It  is  surely  better  than  going 
through  life  with  a  trembling  distrust  of  one's  own 
capacities." 

"  DeUghtfully  put,"  said  the  Governess,  looking 
me  merrily  in  the  face.  "  Why,  I  can  read  you  like 
book." 

"  You  are  the  second  person  who  has  made  that 
remark  to  me  to-day,"  I  replied.  "  I  must  be  very 
legible." 

"  Who  else  said  so  ?  "  asked  Miss  Anchester  with 
visible  surprise. 

"  The   Queen,"   I   answered. 

"  The  Queen  !  " 

"  Yes,"  I  said.  "  I  went  to  Heldersburg  this 
afternoon  with  a  message  to  her  from  his  Majesty." 

"Oh,  you  were  the  King's  messenger !  "  she 
ejaculated.  "  King  Karl  told  me  the  whole  story 
without  mentioning  names.  I  congratulate  you  on 
your  success." 


FROST    AND    FRIENDSHIP       119 

"  Now  you  are  ministering  to  my  conceit,"  I 
remarked,  laughing  in  turn. 

"Come,"  she  said  looking  away,  "  we  must  return 
to  the  dancing." 

"  May  I  take  up  the  broken  thread  of  Terpsi- 
chore ?  " 

"  You  may  dance  with  me  again  if  that  is  what 
you  mean,  but  you  must  not  talk  like  that." 

At  the  conclusion  of  the  dance  the  King  approached 
us.  He  had  been  dancing  with  Mrs.  Van  Troeber, 
and  was  very  warm  and  short  of  breath. 

"  This  rariiied  air,"  he  said,  "  is  frightfully  un- 
satisfying to  a  short-winded  person  like  myself. 
Miss  Anchester,  may  I  have  the  pleasure  of  a 
dance  ?  " 

I  felt  some  one  gently  touching  my  arm,  and 
looked  round.     It  was  General  Meyer. 

"  You  are  an  Englishman,"  he  said  ;  "  you  will 
not  refuse  to  have  a  drink  with  me." 

"  If  you  make  it  a  question  of  upholding  my 
national  prestige,  I  cannot,"  I  replied. 

"  I  want  you  to  tell  me  aU  about  your  experience 
this  afternoon,"  he  said,  as  we  sauntered  off  towards 
the  refreshment  room. 

I  recounted  my  adventures,  and  he  listened  with 
palpable,  albeit  silent,  amusement. 

"  That  threat  about  the  Zaubertisch  was  a 
stroke  of  genius,"  he  said.  "  The  joke  is,  that  the 
Queen,  for  the  first  time  in  her  life,  is  thoroughly 
afraid  of  her  husband." 

"It  is  to  be  hoped  that  the  condition  will  be 
permanent,"   I  commented. 


120      FROST    AND    FRIENDSHIP 

The  commander-in-chief  made  an  expressive 
gesture. 

"  It  is  not  Ukely,"  he  said.  "  King  Karl  is  an 
excellent  man — he  is  a  brave  man.  Towards  men, 
in  spite  of  his  easy  manner,  he  can  be  stern — ruthless. 
Towards  his  wife  he  is  weakness  itself.  The  pheno- 
menon is  not  an  uncommon  one." 

"  Ah !  "  I  said ;  "  if  he  would  but  bully  her, 
frighten  her,  ill-treat  her  even,  it  would  be  the 
best  possible  thing  for  his  own  peace,  and  that 
of  the  country." 

"  True,  perfectly  true,"  assented  my  companion. 
"  Unfortunately,  human  nature  being  what  it  is,  we 
cannot  expect  the  desired  domestic  revolution  to  be 
permanent.     By  the  way,  do  you  want  a  drink  ?  " 

"  I  would  far  rather  not,"  I  replied. 

"  So  would  I.  The  habit  of  drinking  between 
meals  has  no  attraction  for  me,  but  it  is  sometimes 
necessary  to  conform  to  popular  prejudices.  What 
do  you  think  of  Schneider  ?  " 

"  I  think  him  clever,"  I  answered. 

"  He  has  a  brilliant  record.  Do  you  think  he  is 
trustworthy  ?  " 

"  I  should  say  so.  I  frankly  admit  I  do  not  feel 
disposed  to  like  him,  but  he  does  not  seem  the  sort 
of  man  to  play  a  double  game.  I  fancy  his  heart 
is  in  his  work." 

"  I  am  inclined  to  agree  with  you,"  said  my 
companion  after  a  pause  ;  "  but  the  King  unfortu- 
nately has  taken  a  strong  dislike  to  him." 

"  And  you  ?  "  I  asked. 

"Oh,   I,   I   like  him   well  enough.    The  fellow 


FROST   AND    FRIENDSHIP       121 

has  a  fund  of  interesting  reminiscences  and  is  no 
fool.     The  average  Grimlander  is." 

"  You  are  a  Grimlander  yourself,"  I  said. 

"  I  am  a  Jew,"  he  retorted.  "  A  Jew  of  Grimland 
if  you  will,  but  first  and  foremost  a  Jew." 

"It  is  to  your  credit  to  be  proud  of  it,"  I  said. 

"  I  am  not  proud  of  it  all,"  he  retorted.  "  I 
admit  the  obvious,  that  is  all.  I  would  sooner  be  an 
adventurous  swashbuckler  like  the  Grand  Duke, 
or  even  a  reckless  young  detrimental  like  Max,  than 
what  I  am — a  cautious,  scheming,  uncourageous 
Jew." 

"  Nonsense,"  I  said  good-humouredly.  "  A  man 
who  has  won  his  way  to  the  position  of  commander- 
in-chief,  must  not  call  himself  uncourageous." 

"  I  have  never  been  in  action  in  my  life,"  he  said  ; 
"  and  I  pray  to  heaven  that  I  never  may  be.  I 
do  not  fear  death  more  than  other  people,  but  I  am 
incapable  of  the  fighting  lust  which  alone  carries 
men  through  the  terrors  of  the  battle-field.  I  won 
my  way  to  my  present  position  not  by  nerve,  but 
by  brains.  I  invented  a  gun-carriage  which  was 
capable  of  being  transported  rapidly  over  snow, 
and  the  King,  who  has  a  good  eye  for  ability,  singled 
me  out  early  in  my  career,  and  ever  since  has  lost  no 
opportunity  of  advancing  me.  Therefore  I  serve 
him  with  a  whole  heart,  and  my  intelligence,  such 
as  it  is,  is  at  his  service.  More  than  that  I  cannot 
offer  him,  for  I  have  not  the  instincts  of  a  soldier." 

How  much  truth  there  was  in  my  companion's 
frank  self-depreciation  it  was  impossible  to  say. 
His  manner,  as  always,  was  sarcastic  and  insincere, 


122      FROST   AND    FRIENDSHIP 

and  a  half-smile  flitted  perpetually  around  his  mobile 
lips.  But  a  physically  brave  man  does  not  call 
himself  a  coward,  and  I  felt  that  the  General's 
admission  was  probably  true  enough  up  to  a  point. 

"  Let  us  go  back,"  he  said.  "  Our  absence  will 
be  noticed.  Tell  me,  have  you  ever  seen  a  finer 
widow  than  Mrs.  Van  Troeber  ?  " 

"  A  widow  ?  " 

"  Yes  ;  for  the  moment.    Is  she  not  magnificent  ?  " 

I  hastened  to  give  my  assent.  General  Meyer's 
eyes  were  half  shut  in  a  contemplative  rhapsody  and 
the  effect  was  distinctly  ridiculous.  He  had  evi- 
dently been  a  very  handsome  man  in  his  youth,  and 
would  certainly  be  a  very  ugly  one  in  his  old  age. 
At  the  present  moment  he  was  on  the  border  line, 
a  man  such  as  middle-aged  women  admire  and  young 
ones  laugh  at,  his  own  opinion  undoubtedly  coin- 
ciding with  that  of  the  former. 

We  strolled  back  to  the  ball-room  where  a  big 
square-dance  was  in  progress. 

"  The  cotillon,"  whispered  my  companion.  "  Is 
not  Mrs.  Van  Troeber  divine  ?  " 

'"■[A  graceful  dancer,"  I  admitted ;  "  and  th« 
dance  itself  is  very  pretty." 

Suddenly  the  figure  came  to  an  end,  and  the 
dancers  broke  up  into  small  isolated  groups.  Then, 
before  I  was  aware  of  what  was  happening,  a  young 
lady  rushed  towards  me,  and  thrust  something  into 
my  hand. 

"  I  beg  to  offer  you  a  present,"  said  the^Prinzessin 
Mathilde,  for  it  was  she. 

Considerably  mystified,   I  looked  at  the  object 


FROST    AND    FRIENDSHIP       123 

she  had  forced  upon  me.  It  was  a  knife  in  an 
embossed  leather  sheath,  its  handle  prettily  enamel- 
led in  different  colours  after  the  fashion  of  the 
country's    handiwork. 

"  I  am  much  obliged,"  I  said,  quite  at  a  loss  to 
account  for  the  unexpected  generosity. 

"  Now  you  must  dance  the  next  figure  with  me," 
she  said.  "It  is  hard  on  you,  I  know,  but  you 
must  conform  to  the  laws  of  the  cotillon." 

"  I  begin  to  comprehend,"  I  said ;  "  the  ladies 
have  presents  given  to  them  which  they  bestow  on 
the  man  they  want  to  dance  with." 

"  Exactly.  Most  of  the  girls  are  afraid  to  offer 
their  presents  to  young  men — see,  there  is  Miss 
Anchester  giving  a  meerschaum  pipe  to  Mr.  Schnei- 
der— but  personally  I  don't  hke  dancing  with  old 
fogies." 

"  I  feel  intensely  flattered  at  not  being  included 
among  the  old  fogies,"  I  said. 

The   Princess  laughed  gaily. 

She  was  a  beautiful  little  dancer,  and  apart  from 
the  compliment  of  the  thing  I  was  glad  she  had 
chosen  me  as  a  partner.  At  the  end  of  the  cotillon 
she  made  a  frank  demand  for  refreshment,  and  I 
led  her  to  the  region  of  lemonade  and  strawberry- 
ices. 

"  You  know  I  am  terribly  offended  with  you," 
she  said,  as  I  handed  her  some  frozen  abomination. 

"  I  guessed  so  much  from  your  manner,"  I  replied 
sarcastically. 

"  I  refer  of  course,"  she  went  on,  "  to  your  unman- 
nerly refusal  to  bob-sleigh  this  afternoon." 


124      FROST   AND    FRIENDSHIP 

I  wondered  whether  after  all  her  request  might 
not  have  been  made  without  the  arriere  pensee  of 
decoying  me  from  the  path  of  duty. 

"  I  fancy  your  brother  would  not  have  been 
able  to  help  us,"  I  said  drily.  "  I  came  across  him 
further  along  the  road.     He  was  on  duty." 

"  I  know,"  she  said  laughing  ;  "  he  was  trying  to 
stop  you  getting  to  Heldersburg.  So  was  I.  How 
you  outwitted  him  we  can't  guess.  Both  Max  and 
father  are  in  a  fearful  temper  to-night." 

"  And  you  are  the  only  amiable  member  of  the 
family  ?  " 

"I  and  my  little  brother  Stephan,  who  is  in  bed 
and   asleep  by  now." 

"  I  have  not  the  honour  of  his  acquaintance." 

"  I  must  introduce  you.  He  is  a  splendid  little 
fellow,  just  eight  years  old,  and  a  great  friend  of 
the   King's  children." 

"  It  seems  a  pity,"  I  said,  "  that  the  friendship 
does  not  extend  to  the  elder  members  of  the  respec- 
tive families." 

The  Princess's  expression  became  serious. 

"  Oh,  I  like  the  Queen  well  enough,"  she  said. 

"  But  you  do  not  like  the  King — well   enough  ?  " 

"  Yes  I  do,"  she  said,  after  a  moment's  thought. 
"  Considering  all  things,  I  like  him  far  too  much." 

"  Your  remark  calls  for  an  explanation." 

"  I  mean,"  she  said,  "  that  he  is  genial,  amusing, 
fond  of  his  children,  and  very  kind  in  his  manners." 

"  Is  that  a  reason  for  tempering  your  affection  ?  " 
I  inquired. 

"  You  do  not  understand.    The  King  is  a  bad 


FROST    AND    FRIENDSHIP       125 

man,  and  like  many  bad  men  has  certain  very 
attractive  qualities.  It  is  very  hard  to  help  liking 
him." 

"  Personally,"  I  said,  "  I  do  not  try.  But  then 
I  am  unaware  of  his  particular  wickedness." 

"  He  is  very  irreligious,  to  begin  with,"  said 
the  Princess,  "  and  has  quarrelled  bitterly  with  the 
Archbishop  of  Weidenbruck.  Then  he  treats  the 
poor  Queen  abominably — his  behaviour  towards 
her  IS  notorious.  Again  he  neglects  his  duties  as 
King  most  disgracefully.  He  takes  little  or  no 
interest  in  the  army,  and  it  is  said,  though  I  can 
hardly  believe  it,  that  he  is  in  the  pay  of  Austria.'" 

"  Who  told  you  all  this  ?  "  I  said. 

"  My   father,"   she   answered   simply. 

"  Then  it  is  no  use  my  trying  to  combat  your 
belief." 

"  My  father  is  a  truthful  man." 

"  Whereas  I   am— doubtful  ?  " 

"  No,  I  don't  mean  that,"  she  laughed,  "  but 
you  don't  know  the  King.  How  can  you  when  you 
have  seen  practically  nothing  of  him  ?  I  don't 
blame  you  for  taking  his  part.  You  are  here  as  his 
friend,  his  guest.  I  respected  you  immensely  for 
refusing  my  invitation  to  bob-sleigh  this  afternoon, 
and  still  more  for  evading  the  Guards  and  getting 
your  message  through  to  Heldersburg.  How 
ever  did  you  do  it  ?  " 

"  If  I  tell  you  it  must  be  in  confidence." 

"  Naturally." 

I  briefly  related  my  method  of  passing  through 
the  guarded  Waldpromenade,  adding — 


126      FROST    AND    FRIENDSHIP 

"  I  don't  much  mind  if  you  do  tell  your  people 
how  I  managed  it,  provided  Lame  Peter  not  does 
get  into  trouble.  You  see,  the  poor  old  fellow 
didn't  realise  he  was  playing  an  important  part  in 
a  dynastic  intrigue." 

The  Princess  laughed  very  heartily  at  my  recital. 

"  How  delicious,"  she  commented,  "  Do  let  me 
tell  Max.  But  won't  you  come  bob-sleighing 
to-morrow  afternoon  with  us.  Come  up  to  the 
Marienkastel  at  three  o'clock  and  I  will  introduce 
you  to  Stephan  who  is  devoted  to  the  sport." 

"  I  will  come  with  pleasure,"  I  replied  ;  "  if  you 
promise  that  it  is  not  part  of  a  scheme  to  lure  the 
King's  messenger  to  destruction." 

"  I  give  you  my  word  of  honour,"  she  laughed. 
"  But  mind  you,  I  don't  guarantee  a  similar  guile- 
lessness  to  all  my  invitations.  We  are  at  war,  you 
and  I,  and  unless  I  specially  stipulate  a  truce  you 
must  take  it  that  hostilities  are  on  the  tapis.  Now 
finish  your  lemonade  and  take  me  back  to  the  ball- 
room." 

"  You  quite  make  me  suspect  the  lemonade," 
I  said,  gulping  down  my  refreshment,  and  offering 
her  my  arm. 


CHAPTER   X 

NEXT  morning  I  awoke  at  nine  o'clock  with 
the  pleasant  consciousness  of  having  enjoyed 
a  deep  and  dreamless  slumber.  Leisurely  I  rose 
and  made  my  toilet,  meditating  the  while  over  the 
crowded  incidents  of  the  past  twenty-four  hours. 
Was  life  at  the  Brun-varad  always  like  this,  I  asked 
myself,  a  confusing  round  of  gaiety  and  intrigue, 
of  sport  and  danger,  a  disquieting  medley  of  feminine 
ungraciousness  and  feminine  amenity.  Did  these 
things  constitute  a  normal  state  of  affairs  at  the 
Winter  Palace,  or  had  I  by  chance  happened  on  a 
peculiarly  eventful  day  in  this  delightful  and  salu- 
brious locality.  I  came  to  the  conclusion  that 
though  Weissheim  was  a  more  exciting  neighbour- 
hood than  South  Kensington,  I  had  nevertheless 
arrived  at  a  juncture,  which,  if  not  particularly 
remarkable  for  this  unstable  kingdom,  was  at  any 
rate  raised  slightly  above  the  ordinary  importance 
of  the  country's  daily  round. 

Curiously  enough  the  person  who  commanded 
the  largest  share  of  my  thoughts  was  neither  Miss 
Anchester  nor  the  Princess,  the  King  nor  the  Queen, 
the  uncourageous  commander-in-chief  nor  the  trucu- 
lent Grand  Duke,  but  the  broad-faced,  piercing-eyed 
detective.     The  personality  of  Herr  Schneider  fasci- 


128      FROST   AND    FRIENDSHIP 

nated  me,  though  why,  it  was  hard  to  say.  I 
neither  admired  his  personal  appearance  nor  felt 
the  slightest  respect  for  his  moral  qualities.  He 
was  rather  ugly  than  otherwise,  and  I  felt  perfectly 
certain  that  his  character  was  the  reverse  of  noble. 
His  restless  manner  irritated  me,  and  the  mere  fact 
that  he  possessed  undoubted  abihty  in  his  pro- 
fession was  quite  insufficient  to  account  for  the  way 
in  which  his  individuality  had  taken  hold  of  my 
imagination.  I  fancy  the  real  reason  lay  in  a  certain 
resemblance  which  his  trains  of  thought  seemed  to 
bear  to  my  own.  It  appeared  to  me  that  in  his 
mental  outlook,  gloomy,  pessimistic,  analytic  as 
it  was,  he  was  but  an  exaggerated  likeness  of  myself. 
But  he  was  a  man  of  forty,  whereas  I  was  but  eight 
and  twenty :  what  if  in  another  dozen  years  I 
should  develop  into  a  morbid,  disillusioned  being 
such  as  he  was,  without  the  record  of  a  distinguished 
career  behind  me,  such  as  he  had  ?  I  shuddered, 
for  the  possibility  was  unattractive  in  the  extreme. 
Having  completed  my  toUet  I  stepped  into  my 
sitting-room  with  the  express  determination  of 
evicting  my  gloomy  meditations  with  the  assistance 
of  hot  coffee  and  rolls.  As  a  matter  of  fact  the 
desired  eviction  was  effected  by  a  somewhat  more 
refined  agency.  On  my  plate,  and  tied  together 
with  a  bright  blue  ribbon  were  some  carnations. 
An  inspection  of  the  ribbon  disclosed  some  writing 
in  ink  capitals  which  had  spread  so  much  as  to  be 
almost  indistinguishable.  A  careful  scrutiny  at 
length  revealed  the  word  Gedachtniss — Remem- 
brance.    I   smiled   involuntarily — my   second   day 


FROST   AND    FRIENDSHIP       129 

at  Weissheim  was  opening  well.  My  immediate 
desire  was  to  find  out  the  author  of  this  delicate 
little  attention,  and  the  process  of  discovery  seemed 
to  offer  little  difficulty,  for  my  acquaintances  at 
Weissheim  were  not  numerous  and  it  was  obvious 
that  the  male  portion  might  be  at  once  set  aside. 
Next,  continuing  my  process  of  elimination,  I 
struck  out  the  Fraulein  von  Helder.  She,  I  argued, 
would  never  dream  of  sending  any  one  flowers. 
Had  she  fallen  in  love  with  me,  she  would,  as  likely 
as  not,  have  presented  me  with  a  dough  cake. 
There  remained — but  a  sudden  illuminating  thought 
caused  me  to  alter  my  method.  Miss  Anchester 
had  been  wearing  some  carnations  in  her  bosom 
the  previous  evening,  and  though,  man-like,  I  had 
failed  to  be  impressed  by  that  charming  addition 
to  her  simple  but  effective  attire,  the  remembrance 
of  them  came  back  to  me  as  I  gazed  at  the  pretty 
blooms  which  adorned  my  solitary  breakfast  table. 
Of  course  it  was  the  Governess  who  had  sent  them. 
Who  else  could  have  had  any  object  in  doing  so  ? 
Miss  Anchester  and  I  had  had  a  slight  misunder- 
standing and  this  was  her  gracious  method  of  admit- 
ting that  she  had  been  in  the  wrong.  "  Gedacthniss ! " 
Remembrance,  of  what  ?  Of  that  incident  of  the 
Kastel  run,  of  course,  which  I  had  alluded  to  some- 
what tactlessly  on  the  previous  evening,  and  of 
which  doubtless  she  retained  a  pleasant  and  roman- 
tic recollection.  Remembrance  of  the  acerbities, 
the  explanations,  the  reconciliations,  of  the  past 
day.  She  could  read  me  like  a  book,  could  she  ? 
Certainly   I   could   read   her  like   one.    Womanly 

X 


130      FROST   AND    FRIENDSHIP 

despite  her  pronounced  athleticism,  sentimental 
despite  her  calm,  unemotional,  critical  exterior. 
I  liked  the  type,  and  determined,  now  that  the 
foohsh  misconception  due  to  my  mother's  quaint 
request  had  been  brushed  aside,  that  we  should 
henceforth  be  the  best  of  friends  with  each  other. 

Downstairs  I  met  the  King  and  Herr  Schneider 
chatting  quietly  over  an  early  pipe. 

"  I  propose  taking  you  on  to  the  curling  rink 
this  morning,  Saunders,"  said  the  former  who  was 
evidently  in  excellent  spirits  "  A  strong  fellow 
like  you,  with  a  good  eye,  ought  to  make  a  fine 
curler.'* 

"  Does  curling  need  strength  ? "  I  enquired. 
1  had  seen  the  game  played  at  Wimbledon,  a  sort 
of  glorified  bowls  on  the  ice,  in  which  "  stones  " 
of  polished  granite  were  propelled  towards  a  wooden 
*'  jack  "  standing  in  the  centre  of  a  series  of  concen- 
tric rings. 

"  Sometimes  it  requires  strength,"  replied  the 
King.  "  When  there  is  a  little  snow  falling  or 
when  the  ice  is  sticky  from  the  force  of  the  sun,  it 
takes  a  considerable  amount  of  strength  to  knock 
an  opponent's  '  stone  '  out  of  the  '  house  '  Every 
one  begins  by  despising  the  game,  and  ends  in  suc- 
cumbing to  its  fascination." 

"  One  comes  to  scoff,  remains  to  play,"  I  remarked 
"  Are  you  coming,  too,  Herr  Schneider  ?  " 

"  No,  thank  you,"  replied  the  detective.  "  I 
have  seen  curling  played  before.  I  should 
certainly  start  by  scoffing,  but  I  do  not  possess  the 
capacity  for  enthusiasm  necessary  for  the  potential 


FROST    AND    FRIENDSHIP       131 

convert.  Miss  Anchester  has  promised  to  give  me 
a  lesson  in  tobogganing,  and  I  am  looking  forward 
to  a  most  enjoyable  morning  with  her." 

The  curling  rink  on  to  which  the  King  conducted 
me  was  a  flooded  piece  of  level  ground,  which  in 
summer  did  duty  as  a  lawn-tennis  court.  A  number 
of  visitors  from  the  Pariserhof,  English,  Scotch 
and  American,  were  standing  in  groups  on  the  ice 
waiting  for  the  church  clock  to  strike  eleven,  at 
which  hour  lots  were  drawn  to  decide  which  pitch 
the  various  players  should  curl  upon.  All  wore 
snow-boots  on  their  feet,  and  most  of  them  carried 
brooms  in  their  hands.  As  the  clock  struck  there 
were  general  movements  towards  the  Secretary, 
Colonel  Stuart,  who  held  in  his  hand  a  small  bag 
containing  counters  for  the  prospective  players  to 
pick  from. 

"  Numbers  on  the  first  pitch,  blanks  on  the  middle, 
reds  on  the  third,"  called  out  the  Colonel  in  the 
tones  of  one  addressing  a  battalion. 

I  drew  a  plain  white  counter,  which  put  me  into 
the  same  game  as  the  King,  while  Colonel  Stuart 
was  also  one  of  the  eight  who  were  destined  by  the 
draw  to  curl  on  the  central  pitch. 

The  King  and  the  Colonel  picked  up,  and  I  was 
selected  by  the  former  to  play  first  for  his  four. 
This  I  took  as  a  great  compliment  till  I  discovered 
that  the  worst  player  was  always  chosen  to  play 
first,  the  better  performers  being  reserved  for  the 
more  difficult  situations  which  occurred  later. 

"  Now  then  Saunders,"  said  the  King,  when  I 
had  selected  a  couple  of  big  grey  stones  out  of  the 


132      FROST    AND    FRIENDSHIP 

lockers,  "  tie  these  pieces  of  red  ribbon  on  to  the 
handles  and  get  ready  to  start." 

The  number  one  of  the  other  side  and  myself 
took  up  a  position  at  one  end  of  the  pitch,  the  two 
"  Skippers "  at  the  other.  The  number  twos 
and  threes  of  the  respective  teams  lined  up  on  oppo- 
site sides  of  the  track,  broom  in  hand,  ready  at  the 
word  of  command  to  polish  the  ice  in  front  of  the 
stone  if  it  appeared  to  have  been  delivered  with  too 
little  strength. 

"  Now  then,  Number  one,"  sang  out  the  King. 
"  You   begin   please." 

I  knelt  down  on  the  "  crampet,"  grasped  my 
stone  firmly  by  the  handle,  swung  it  back  forcibly, 
and  "  delivered  "  it. 

The  direction  was  excellent :  it  went  straight 
for  the  "  tee,"  knocked  it  spinning  over,  and  sailed 
gaily  through  the  "  house,"  as  the  series  of  concen- 
tric rings  are  called,  finally  finishing  up  abruptly 
against  the  banked  up  snow  at  the  edge  of  the  rink. 

"  Too  much  breakfast,"  was  the  King's  brief 
but  expressive  comment. 

It  was  now  the  turn  of  my  opponent,  the  other 
Number  one,  to  send  down  his  stone. 

"  Keep  your  eye  on  my  broom,"  shouted  Colonel 
Stuart  to  him,  "  and  play  with  the  '  in  handle.'  " 

I  watched  with  attention.  The  man  swung  back 
much  as  I  had  done,  but  he  put  his  *'  stone  "  down 
far  more  lightly,  and  as  he  did  so  turned  his  elbow 
in,  imparting  a  left-to-right  spin  to  his  projectile. 

"  Soop,"  yelled  out  the  Colonel  when  the  stone 
had   traversed   about   half   the   requisite  distance. 


FROST   AND    FRIENDSHIP       133 

"  Soop,  lads,  for  all  ye're  worth.  Soop,  I  tell  ye, 
bring  the  beast  along  and  he'll  be  a  dandy  shot 
yet." 

Gradually  the  stone,  which  had  been  aimed 
somewhat  to  the  left  of  the  tee,  curled  round,  spin- 
ning the  while  on  its  own  axis,  till  it  was  fairly  in 
the  centre  of  the  pitch.  Meanwhile  the  soopers 
plied  their  brooms  with  demoniac  energy  till  the 
stone  died  as  far  as  I  could  judge  about  a  couple 
of  feet  this  side  of  the  outermost  circle. 

"jNot  enough  breakfast,"  I  remarked  audibly 
and  perhaps  ungenerously.  My  verdict,  however, 
was  not  that  of  the  opposing  "  skip." 

"  Well  played.  Barker,"  roared  out  the  Colonel, 
"  that's  a  perfect  number  one  shot." 

*'  You  want  to  play  your  stone  just  short  of  the 
'  house,'  "  my  opponent  condescended  to  explain. 
"  If  it  is  short  it  may  get  promotion,  if  it  is  too  far 
every  rub  it  gets  makes  it  worse." 

I  grasped  the  point  with  the  readiness  of  one 
who  has  attained  a  fair  measure  of  skill  at  a  great 
variety  of  games,  and  set  down  my  next  stone  with 
far  less  expenditure  of  force. 

**  Sweep,"  yelled  the  King  at  once.  "  Sweep 
it  all  the  way.  Up  besoms !  it's  no  good.  Man, 
you're  a  hog." 

This  last  expression  delivered  in  a  tone  of  infinite 
sadness  and  reproach,  sounded  in  my  ears  a  rather 
unnecessarily  violent  piece  of  obloquy. 

Mr.  Barker  once  more  vouchsafed  me  a  piece  of 
instruction. 

"  They're  shunting  your  stone  out  of  the  track," 


134      FROST    AND    FRIENDSHIP 

he  said,  "  because  it's  a  '  hog.'  There's  a  line  there 
scratched  on  the  ice  some  yards  in  front  of  the 
'  house  '  called  the  '  hog  score.'  If  you  don't  get 
your  stone  over  that  it  isn't  in  play." 

I  was  humiliated  by  my  conspicuous  ill-success 
though  relieved  in  my  opinion  of  the  King's  manners. 

After  the  Number  one's  had  sent  down  their  two 
stones,  the  respective  Number  two's  took  up  their 
position  at  the  "  crampet  "  end,  while  the  instructive 
Barker  and  myself  took  our  places  opposite  each 
other  among  the  sweepers. 

When  the  "  Skip,"  bade  me  sweep  I  swept  with 
the  energy  of  a  strong  man  desirous  of  doing  his 
share  of  the  side's  work.  Inwardly  I  scoffed  at  the 
puerility  of  the  whole  thing.  The  game  seemed 
to  me  childish  or  senile  according  as  one  considered 
the  trivial  nature  of  its  intention  or  the  very  mod- 
erate amount  of  strength  and  energy  necessary  to 
achieve  success.  Nevertheless  I  was  far  from  being 
bored.  The  conditions  were  so  perfect  that  the 
uninspiring  nature  of  the  game  was  quite  forgotten 
in  them.  The  bright  sun,  the  keen  air,  the  majestic 
view  were  things  to  oust  boredom  from  the  dullest 
mind,  while  the  extraordinary  keenness  and  enthu- 
siasm of  the  other  players  were  in  themselves  a 
source  of  constant,  albeit  somewhat  contemptuous, 
amusement  to  me.  I  watched  with  mild  interest 
the  manner  in  which  the  Number  two's  and  three's 
sent  down  their  stones:  how  the  opposing  Number 
two,  following  Colonel  Stuart's  stentorian  directions, 
succeeded  in  establishing  his  stone  in  the  very 
centre  of  the  house,  "  a  pot-hd,"  as  they  called  it. 


FROST    AND    FRIENDSHIP       135 

How  the  King  commanded  his  side  to  oust  this 
stone  from  its  proud  position  by  straight  forcing 
shots,  and  how  the  Colonel  bade  his  men  lay  short 
guards  for  his  "  pot-lid  "  and  protect  it  from  these 
dastardly  attempts.  When  it  came  to  the  "  Skip- 
pers "  turn  to  play,  they  walked  down  the  pitch 
to  the  crampet  end  while  the  respective  Number 
three's  took  up  their  position  in  the  "  house,"  the 
situation  affording  the  keenest  excitement  to  every 
one  but  myself.  In  spite  of  our  efforts  the  "  pot- 
lid  "  still  remained  in  the  centre  of  the  'house,'  and 
the  approach  to  this  successful  stone  was  guarded 
by  two  other  stones  about  two  feet  apart  which 
protected  it  from  assault  either  by  the  "  in-curl  '* 
or  the  "  out-curl." 

The  King's  first  shot  struck  away  one  of  the 
guards  but  stopped  in  the  place  which  the  dislodged 
stone  had  itself  been  occupying,  leaving  matters 
precisely  in  the  "  status  quo." 

Colonel  Stuart  then  tried  to  block  the  port  between 
the  two  guarding  stones,  but  being  afraid  of  doing 
more  harm  than  good  sent  down  a  gentle  shot  which 
failed  to  get  over  the  hog-score  and  was  accordingly 
swept  ignominiously  to  one  side. 

Then  the  King  played  his  second  stone,  the  final 
shot  for  our  side.  By  a  combination  of  skill  and 
good  luck  it  curled  between  the  two  guards,  edged 
up  to  the  winning  shot  and  quietly  shoved  it  out 
of  the  way,  stopping  dead  itself  at  the  moment  of 
contact,  in  the  proud  position  of  "  winning  stone." 

I  was  prepared  for  some  expression  of  approval, 
but  I  certainly  never  anticipated  the  wild  ejacula- 


136      FROST   AND    FRIENDSHIP 

tion  and  ecstatic  gestures  with  which  our  Number 
three  greeted  the  King's  fortunate  essay. 

"  Man,  yeVe  done  it !  "  he  yelled  at  the  top  of 
his  voice.  "  You  for  a  curler  !  Sehr  gut  gespielt !  " 
and  with  this,  the  Weissheim  curler's  concentrated 
essence  of  all  praise,  he  hurled  his  besom  high  into 
the  air,  and  gave  vent  to  a  fearsome  and  inarticulate 
yell. 

The  King  beamed  all  over  his  sun-burned  counte- 
nance with  obvious  pleasure  in  his  success,  and 
patting  me  on  the  back  chaffed  me  humorously 
about  my  failure  to  get  a  stone  in  play  and  offered 
me  a  little  practical  advice  as  to  the  method  of 
delivery. 

The  last  shot  however  had  yet  to  be  played. 
It  was  possible  that  Colonel  Stuart  might  repeat 
the  King's  successful  performance  of  "  drawing 
the  port "  and  substituting  his  own  stone  for  the 
winner.  As  a  matter  of  fact,  what  he  did  was  to 
strike  one  of  our  short  stones,  promoting  it  to  second 
and  making  us  two  stones  "in,"  to  the  huge  delight 
of  our  side  and  the  pathetic  disgust  of  our  opponents. 

At  the  conclusion  of  this  "  end  "  we  began  again 
playing  the  other  way  of  the  pitch.  My  second 
effort  was  much  more  successful  than  my  first. 
Both  my  stones  were  "  in  play,"  and  one  of  them 
was  eventually  promoted  into  the  proud  position 
of  being  the  winner.  Gradually  a  little  of  the 
prevailing  enthusiasm  began  to  affect  me.  I 
"  sooped,"  no  longer  with  the  perfunctory  energy 
of  the  good-natured  scoffer,  but  with  a  little  of  the 
true  curler's  zeal.    I  took  considerable  pains   with 


FROST    AND    FRIENDSHIP       137 

my  own  shots,  and  was  rewarded  with  a  fair  amount 
of  success  and  my  "  Skipper's "  commendation 
On  one  occasion  indeed,  when  I  succeeded  in  striking 
a  good  shot  of  the  opposing  Number  one's  out  of 
the  "  house,"  I  was  awarded  a  "  Sehr  gut  ge- 
spielt."  Finally,  at  the  last  "  end  "  before  lunch, 
I  sent  down  a  couple  of  stones  which  the  King 
informed  me  were  "  two  perfect  number  one's." 
My  heart  swelled  within  me,  and  I  looked  round  to 
note  the  expression  of  admiration  which  I  felt  sure 
all  faces  would  be  wearing  for  such  a  rapidly  im- 
proved novice.  My  glance  fell  on  Miss  Anchester 
and  Herr  Schneider,  who  were  standing  behind 
me  watching  the  game.  Their  rakes  and  elbow- 
pads,  as  well  as  their  flushed  countenances  pro- 
claimed that  they  had  been  tobogganing.  They 
waited  watching  till  the  conclusion  of  the  "  end," 
when  the  King  and  I,  victors  in  the  encounter, 
joined  them,  and  together  we  trudged  back  in  the 
direction  of  the  Brun-varad.  The  King,  taking 
the  detective  by  the  arm,  walked  on  ahead  leaving 
me  with  Miss  Anchester. 

"  How  do  you  like  curling  ?  "  asked  my  com- 
panion. 

"  It  seems  to  me  a  game  for  old  men — or  ladies," 
I  remarked. 

"  That  is  gallant,  but  hardly  an  answer  to  my 
question." 

"  The  answer  is  implied.  I  prefer  something  a 
shade  more  strenuous." 

"  You  find  it  a  trifle  too  subtle  ?  " 

"No,"    I    rephed.     "I    think    I    mastered    the 


138      FROST   AND    FRIENDSHIP 

difficulties  pretty  quickly.  My  last  two  shots 
left  little  to  be  desired." 

"  Of  course,"  said  Miss  Anchester  calmly.  "  Any 
one  can  play  a  number  one  shot.  If  you  practice 
patiently  you  may  work  your  way  up  to  be  a  number 
two,  or  even  conceivably  a  number  three,  should 
there  be  a  scarcity  of  good  players  on  the  ice.  You 
will  be  better  able  then  to  appreciate  the  niceties 
of  the  game." 

"  You  are  encouraging,"  I  replied.  "  When 
you  suggest  the  possibility  of  my  one  day  playing 
Number  three  you  fairly  dazzle  my  imagination. " 

"  Please  don't  be  sarcastic,"  said  Miss  Anchester 
dispassionately.  "  Sarcasm  is  a  weapon  which 
requires  very  delicate  handling  to  be  effective. 
Seriously  though,  I  gave  you  credit  for  the  necessary 
ambition  and  patience  to  make  a  strong  bid  for 
success  on  the  curling  rink" 

"  Are  you  aware,"  I  said  laughing,  "  that  you 
are  lecturing  me  ?  Is  it  an  unwitting  continuance 
of  your  schoolroom  methods,  or  are  you  still  deter- 
mined to  carry  out  my  mother's  policy  at  all  costs  ?  " 

"  If  I  seem  to  lecture,"  she  replied,  "  it  is  because 
you  lay  yourself  open  to  rebuke.  The  truthfulness 
of  your  mother's  opinion  of  you  is  borne  in  on  me 
more  and  more  every  time  I  speak  with  you." 

"  I  thought  we  had  done  with  all  that  nonsense," 
I  said. 

"  Why  ?  " 

"  I  am  wearing  a  very  charming  flower  in  my 
button-hole." 

"  So  I  perceive." 


FROST    AND    FRIENDSHIP       139 

"  I  took  it  as  a  token  of  reconciliation." 

Miss  Anchester  opened  her  grey  eyes.  "  What 
on  earth  do  you  mean  ?  "  she  asked.  It  was  impos- 
sible to  doubt  the  genuineness  of  her  mystification. 

"  You  do  not  deny  that  you  were  wearing  carna- 
tions in  your  dress  last  night  ?  "     I  enquired. 

"  Why  should  I  ?  You  mean  that  you  are  wear- 
ing the  same  kind  of  flower  to-day  as  a  mute  appeal 
to  me  to  mitigate  my  severity.  It  is  very  touching 
of  you.' 

"  Do  you  mean  to  say,"  I  asked,  considerably 
nettled,  "  that  the  bunch  of  carnations  which  I 
found  on  my  plate  at  breakfast  this  morning  was 
not '' 

"  Sent  by  me  ?  Really  Mr.  Saunders  you  might 
spare  a  little  of  your  abundant  self-respect  for 
other  people." 

"  But  the  blue  ribbon — Gedachtniss,"  I  blurted 
out. 

Miss  Anchester  smiled  involuntarily. 

"  Now  you  are  becoming  indiscreet — painfully 
indiscreet,"    she    remarked. 

"  On  your  word  of  honour,"  I  said,  "  was  it  really 
not  you  who  sent  them  ?  " 

'*  I  have  denied  it  by  implications,"  she  retorted 
coldly,  "  and  that  is  quite  sufficient.  I  don't  know 
why  you  should  consider  me  the  most  fooUsh  woman 
in  Weissheim." 

"  But  whc> " 

"  I  do  not  consider  myself  qualified  to  unravel 
the  fascinating  mystery.  Perhaps  it  was  all  a 
mistake." 


140      FROST    AND    FRIENDSHIP 

"  Fraulein  von  Helder,"  I  muttered.  "  The  Prin- 
zessin  Mathilde,  the — Good  Heavens !  The 
Queen !  " 

Miss  Anchester  laughed  audibly,  and  then  turned 
her  head  away  to  hide  her  mirth. 

Personally  I  saw  nothing  to  laugh  at.  A  chill, 
a  sinking  fear  of  vague  but  dishonourable  possi- 
bilities struck  at  my  heart.  If  matters  took  the 
turn  I  dreaded  I  should  have  to  leave  Weissheim 
in  haste.  And  that  for  several  reasons  I  was  un- 
willing to  do. 


CHAPTER   XI 

"  TTAVE  you  any  plans  for  this  afternoon,  Mr. 

JLA     Saunders  ?  " 

It  was  with  these  words  that  the  Queen  broke 
the  pathetic  silence  she  had  hitherto  maintained 
during  our  midday  meal.  Her  expression  was  that 
of  a  martyr,  and  the  cadence  of  her  voice  suggested 
deep  sorrow. 

"  I  have  promised  to  go  bob-sleighmg  with  the 
Prinzessin  Mathilde,  your  Majesty,"  I  replied. 

"  Perhaps,"  she  went  on  sadly.  "  You  will  permit 
me  to  drive  you  to  the  Marienkastel.  I  am  paying 
a  visit  to  the  Gross-herzog  this  afternoon." 

"  It  would  give  me  very  great  pleasure,"  I  replied 
with  unhesitating  mendacity.  I  had  purposely 
removed  the  carnations  from  my  button-hole  before 
sitting  down  to  lunch,  and  the  last  thing  I  desired 
was  anything  in  the  nature  of  a  tete-a-tete  with 
their  donor. 

"  We  will  start  at  three,"  said  her  Majesty  rising 
at  the  conclusion  of  the  meal.  Miss  Anchester 
darted  a  humorously  scornful  glance  at  me,  and 
followed  her  royal  mistress  from  the  room. 

"  How  did  you  get  on  at  tobogganing,  Herr 
Schneider  ?  "  asked  the  King. 

The  detective's  bright  eyes  shone  brighter  than 
ever  at  the  question. 


142      FROST   AND    FRIENDSHIP 

"  It  was  magnificent,  sire,"  he  replied  with  a 
florid  gesture.  "  I  told  Herr  Saunders  yesterday 
that  I  doubted  the  existence  of  human  happiness.  I 
was  wrong,  for  I  have  found  it  on  the  toboggan 
run." 

"  Did  you  have  many  spills  ?  "  I  enquired. 

"  Several,"  he  answered,  "  but  a  fall  into  soft 
snow  is  one  of  the  most  dehcious  experiences  I 
have  ever  tasted.  It  is  as  pleasurable  as  the  swift 
rush  down  the  smooth  track  with  the  wind  whistling 
in  your  ears,  the  white  banks  flashing  past  you,  and 
your  heart  singing  with  the  ecstasy  of  tremendous 
speed.  I  have  only  tried  the  Children's  run  so  far, 
but  I  long  to  go  on  the  Kastel  run,  to  race  down  the 
straight,  to  spin  round  the  corners,  to  take  Jonathan 
and  David  perilously  high  with  the  certainty  that  an 
error  of  judgment  would  send  one  spinning  through 
a  thousand  feet  of  space  to  a  glorious  death  on  the 
Nonnensee." 

For  a  second  the  King's  eyes  and  mine  met.  Herr 
Schneider's  countenance  besopke  extraordinary  ex- 
citement. His  big  mobile  face  was  twitching  pain- 
fully and  his  eyes  gleamed  with  an  exhilaration  that 
was  hardly  sane. 

"  And  how  are  your  professional  enquiries  pro- 
gressing ?  "  asked  the  King  coolly. 

Herr  Schneider  shrugged  his  shoulders  and  gesti- 
culated with  both  hands.  "  One  must  have  time, 
sire,"  he  replied.  "  In  a  delicate  business  such  as 
this,  it  is  necessary  to  become  famihar  with  one's 
surroundings  by  degrees.  At  present  I  suspect 
every  one  but  your  Majesty  ;  even  your  good  friends 


I  FROST    AND    FRIENDSHIP       143 

here,  General  Meyer  and  Herr  Saunders.  I  must 
look  into  people's  souls  and  that  cannot  be  done  in  a 
day  though  my  eyes  are  keen  and  practised  to  the 
work.  Your  Majesty  need  not  fear  my  devotion 
to  my  task." 

"  If  you  propose  looking  into  my  soul,"  said 
General  Meyer  slowly,  "  you  will  find  the  process 
considerably  duller  than  tobogganing.  I  occasion- 
ally direct  a  glance  that  way  myself,  and  the  view  is 
very  dreary." 

"  To  the  psychologist  all  souls  are  interesting," 
retorted  Schneider  ;  "  there  is  so  much  evil  even  in 
the  most  virtuous  of  men." 

"  There  is  some  soul  of  evil  in  things  good,"  I 
remarked,  "  'would  men  observingly  distil  it  out,' 
as  our  greatest  poet  might  have  said  if  he  had  been 
an  international  detective.  Still,  I  am  glad  you  liked 
tobogganning,  Herr  Schneider  ;  a  love  of  sport  is  a 
necessary  characteristic  in   Weissheim." 

Herr  Schneider  rose,  "  Sport !  "  he  said,  snapping 
his  fingers  contemptuously.  "  The  word  has  no 
meaning  for  me.  Excitement,  danger !  speed ! 
Those  are  things  to  live  for,  and  to  die  for.  But 
with  your  Majesty's  permission  I  will  withdraw.  I 
have  your  Majesty's  business  to  attend  to." 

"  I  don't  remember  ever  disliking  a  man  so 
thoroughly  in  my  life,"  said  the  King  as  the  detec- 
tive closed  the  door  behind  him.  "  I  infinitely 
prefer  my  unprincipled  cousin  Fritz." 

"  I  find  it  difficult  to  dislike  a  man  who  takes  so 
little  trouble  to  conceal  his  unpleasant  disposition," 
said  General  Meyer.     "  I  fancy  your  Majesty  has  in 


144      FROST   AND    FRIENDSHIP 

him  an  excellent  servant,  if  not  a  particularly  agree- 
able companion." 

At  three  o'clock  I  started  out  for  the  Marien- 
kastel  in  the  company  of  her  Majesty,  the  Queen. 
The  coachman,  a  broad-shouldered  man  with  a  big 
red  beard,  I  took  at  first  sight  for  the  man  who  had 
driven  me  on  the  previous  afternoon.  At  a  second 
glance  my  observant  eye  discerned  a  difference  in 
the  shape  and  angle  of  the  nose,  and  I  presumed, 
naturally  enough,  that  he  was  a  relation  of  my 
former  driver. 

"  I  am  keenly  looking  forward  to  being  taken  on 
a  bob-sleigh,  your  Majesty,"  I  began,  by  way  of 
starting  conversation.  As  a  general  rule  I  addressed 
the  King  in  English,  a  language  he  understood  and 
spoke  with  perfect  ease.  The  Queen  however,  who 
did  not  share  the  Anglophil  tendencies  of  her  hus- 
band, preferred  to  be  addressed  in  German,  and  it 
was  in  that  tongue  that  I  had  made  my  common- 
place remark. 

"  Let  us  speak  English,"  said  her  Majesty,  suiting 
the  action  to  the  word.  "It  is  more  agreeable  to 
feel  one  is  not  being  listened  to  by  a  menial." 

My  objections  on  that  score  were  non-existent, 
but  it  was  necessary  to  comply  with  the  royal 
desire. 

"Is  it  always  fine  like  this  at  Weissheim  ?  "  I 
enquired. 

"  Good  gracious,  no,"  replied  my  companion, 
"  but  the  weather  looks  pretty  settled  just  at 
present.  You  see  that  long  wisp  of  fog  hanging 
over   the   far   end   of   the    Nonnensee.      We    call 


FROST   AND    FRIENDSHIP       145 

it '  the  fish.'  When  the  fish  creeps  up  the  valley 
towards  Reifinsdorf  it  means  that  the  weather  is 
going  to  change.  Our  bad  weather  comes  from 
Austria,  and  we  watch  for  it  through  the  gap  between 
the  Klaigberg  and  the  Trau-altar.  An  Austrian 
wind  means  snow,  one  day's,  two  days',  a  week's 
snow.  Silent,  dark,  depressing — Ugh  !  I  hate  Weiss- 
heim." 

"  But  you  do  not  hate  it  now  that  the  sky  is 
clear  ?  "  I  asked. 

"  The  sky  clear  !  "  she  repeated  sadly.  "  Yes,  but 
how  can  clear  skies  cheer  a  woman  whose  husband 
is  a  tyrant — a  weak,  vacillating,  irreligious  tyrant. 
Were  his  tyranny  the  oppression  of  a  strong  man  it 
might  be  tolerable  ;  but  to  be  bulhed  and  threatened 
by  a  man  one  despises,  could  anything  be  more 
humihating  to  a  woman  of  spirit  ?  " 

"  Has  the  King  bullied  you  since  your  return  ?  " 
I  asked,  mindful  of  my  unauthorised  promise  that 
bygones  should  be  bygones. 

"  I  questioned  him  as  to  his  threat  about  the 
Zaubertisch,"  replied  the  Queen,  "  and  he  did  not 
deny  having  uttered  it.  The  man  is  a  monster — 
and  a  weak  monster." 

"Is  it  not  a  case  of  the  iron  hand  in  the  velvet 
glove  ?  " 

"  No,"  she  replied  curtly,  "  it  is  a  case  of  a  palsied 
hand  in  a  glove  of  mail.  Some  one  has  been  stiffen- 
ing his  feeble  spirit.  I  suspect  that  man  Schneider. 
Who  is  he  ?  The  King  says  he  is  an  Austrian  physi- 
cian. Personally  I  believe  he  is  a  detective.  What 
do  you  think,  Mr.  Saunders  ?  " 

K 


146      FROST   AND    FRIENDSHIP 

"  My  knowledge  of  Herr  Schneider  is  of  the  shght- 
est,"  I  answered  evasively.  "  He  seems  very  en- 
thusiastic on  the  subject  of  tobogganning." 

"  Ugh  !  "  said  the  Queen,  "  I  hate  him.  He  has 
the  eyes  of  a  serpent — they  fascinate  one  by  their 
utter  absence  of  pity.  But  tell  me,'*  she  went  on 
laying  her  gloved  hand  lightly  on  my  arm,  "  what  on 
earth  is  a  woman  in  my  position  to  do.  Grimland 
is  the  country  of  my  adoption,  and  as  a  conscientious 
woman  I  put  its  welfare  before  everything.  I  see 
the  State  tottering  for  want  of  firm  government,  the 
Church  neglected,  the  Army  slighted  and  openly 
resentful.  The  Nation  cries  out  for  a  strong,  God- 
fearing man,  and  in  the  Marienkastel  such  a  one  is 
to  be  found.  Because  I  have  taken  counsel  with  the 
Grand  Duke,  I  have  been  called  disloyal.  Disloyal, 
forsooth,  I  who  risk  position,  fame,  everything  in  my 
loyalty  to  the  people  of  Grimland  !  I  know  the 
Grand  Duke  well :  how  loth  he  is  to  raise  a  hand 
against  his  cousin,  how  reluctant  to  take  a  step 
which  may  lead  to  bloodshed  and  temporary  dis- 
order. But  he  is  a  man  whose  watchword  is  Duty, 
and  he  will  not  shrink  from  a  distasteful  task  if  the 
hour  calls  him  !  " 

And  this  woman  had  said  she  could  read  me  like 
a  book  !  Assuredly  if  ever  a  human  being  had  laid 
bare  her  heart  and  mind  the  Queen  had  done  so 
before  me.  She  loved  the  Grand  Duke  Fritz — 
unconsciously  no  doubt — and  she  accepted  the  lofty 
estimate  of  his  character  which  he  himself  had  offered 
her.  The  man  was  ambitious,  unprincipled,  and  a 
hypocrite,  quite  unworthy  to  be  mentioned  in  the 


FROST   AND    FRIENDSHIP       147 

same  breath  as  her  lawful  husband.  Obviously  it 
was  no  good  my  saying  so.  When  a  wife  of  many 
years'  standing  is  thoroughly  dissatisfied  with  her 
spouse  it  is  of  little  use  for  a  comparative  stranger  to 
say  that  she  ought  to  know  him  better.  The  right 
course  was  to  disillusion  her  on  the  subject  of  the 
Grand  Duke,  but  though  I  was  quite  sure  my  estimate 
of  his  character  was  the  correct  one,  I  had  remark- 
ably httle  with  which  to  back  my  opinion.  His 
bluff,  uncultured  manner  she  took  for  straightfor- 
wardness, his  calculated  friendhness  to  the  Church 
and  his  lofty  religious  utterances  appealed  to  her 
narrow  unintelligent  spirituality.  To  destroy  her 
idol  was  a  difficult  and  at  the  best  a  thankless  task. 
To  strive  to  usurp  his  place  was  to  juggle  with  honour, 
and  to  supplant  one  unsatisfactory  situation  with 
another.  And  yet  my  instinct  bade  me  resume  the 
tone  of  vague  sentimentality  I  had  adopted  the 
previous  afternoon  at  Heldersburg. 

"  I  found  some  carnations  on  my  plate  at  breakfast 
this  morning,"  I  said. 

"  I  know,"  said  the  Queen  simply,  "  I  sent  them." 

"  I  prized  them  much,"  I  went  on,  "  but  I  prize 
the  ribbon  which  bound  them  more,  because  it  spoke 
of  remembrance." 

"  It  was  remembrance  of  your  noble  conduct  in 
forcing  your  way  to  Heldersburg,"  she  said. 

"  That,"  I  retorted,  "  is  your  remembrance.  Mine 
is  of  a  noble  woman,  misunderstood,  slighted,  con- 
temned, but  faithful  in  the  face  of  great  provocation. 
True  to  her  country,  and  her  honour,  true  to  her- 
self." 


148      FROST   AND    FRIENDSHIP 

I  was  rewarded  for  this  hypocritical  utterance 
by  a  tender  pressure  of  the  arm. 

"  It  is  good  to  be  understood,"  she  sighed. 

"  You  have  deigned  to  ask  my  advice,"  I  con- 
tinued. "  Such  as  it  is  I  offer  it.  There  is  discon- 
tent in  the  country.  The  Church  is  offended,  the 
Army  restless,  the  people  expectant.  There  is  a 
fever  on  the  land.  Around  are  Russia,  Germany, 
Austria,  alert,  greedy,  prepared.  The  body  politic 
is  sick  and  the  Eagles  are  gathered  together.  To 
bring  the  fever  to  a  head  is  simple  ;  to  keep  off  the 
birds  of  prey  from  the  enfeebled  frame  is  by  no 
means  so  easy.  Our  duty,  your  duty  especially, 
is  to  exercise  a  soothing  influence,  to  aUay  irritation, 
to  seek  peace  at  the  sacrifice  of  all  personal  con- 
siderations, to  ensure  it  at  the  price  of  everything 
but  self-respect.  I  know  your  difficulties,  I  know 
your  proud  sensitive  heart,  and  I  know  too,  the 
high  honour  that  is  your  guiding  star.  That  you 
will  put  up  with  domestic  misery,  that  you  will 
sacrifice  your  private  happiness  to  the  general  weal, 
is  my  belief,  because  it  is  also  my  belief  that  I  know 
your  royal  nature." 

To  my  surprise  and  not  a  little  to  my  dismay, 
my  companion  burst  into  tears. 

"  Oh,  Mr.  Saunders  !  "  she  cried,  "  I  used  always 
to  disUke  Englishmen.  It  seemed  to  me  that 
they  had  no  temperament,  that  they  were  mere  an- 
imals, delighting  in  sport  and  the  gross  pleasure 
of  the  table.  Either  I  have  been  much  mistaken 
or  else  you  are  a  great  exception  to  the  generality." 

"  It  is  the  fate  of  my  countrymen  to  be  mis- 


FROST   AND    FRIENDSHIP       149 

understood,  the  world  over,"  I  replied  sententi- 
ously. 

The  Queen  applied  her  handkerchief  to  her  stream- 
ing eyes  with  the  effective  daintiness  of  the  practised 
weeper, 

"  Please  stop  the  coachman,"  she  said,  still  sobbing. 
"  I  cannot  visit  the  Schattenbergs  with  red  eyes." 

"Is  it  necessary  to  visit  them  at  all  ?"  I  asked. 

"  What  do  you  mean  ?  " 

"  Simply  this,"  I  answered.  "  Because  your  popu- 
larity throughout  the  country  is  great — deservedly 
great — your  attitude  is  watched,  your  movements 
noted.     The   ambitions  of  the  Grand  Duke " 

"  Ambitions  ?  " 

"  Legitimate  aspirations,"  I  substituted  hastily, 
'*  are  well  known.  If  it  is  generally  believed  that 
you  so  far  despair  of  King  Karl's  capacities  as  a 
ruler,  as  to  favour  these  '  legitimate  aspirations,' 
it  will  do  much  to  precipitate  that  fever  which  we 
have  agreed  would  be  so  dangerous  an  affliction  for 
Grimland  at  the  present  juncture." 

"  Then  you  advise  me  to  see  less  of  the  Schatten- 
bergs in  the  future  ?  "  she  asked. 

Her  confidence  was  almost  touching  in  its  readi- 
ness. 

"  In  the  immediate  future,"  I  repUed.  "  Remem- 
ber, we  are  giving  the  King  a  chance.  If  any  one 
can  bring  home  to  him  the  seriousness  of  his  position, 
the  sacred  nature  of  his  charge,  it  is  you.  Your 
task  is  a  difficult  as  well  as  a  distasteful  one,  but  I, 
for  one,  do  not  despair  of  its  success." 

"It  is  strange  how  your  advice  agrees  with  that 


I50      FROST   AND    FRIENDSHIP 

of  Father  Bemhard,  and  how  it  differs  from  that 
received  in  a  letter  yesterday  from  the  Archbishop 
of  Weidenbruck.  Assuredly  Providence  has  set  me 
in  a  position  of  overwhelming  difficulty." 

In  spite  of  my  contempt  I  pitied  her.  Hypocrite 
that  she  was,  she  had  quite  deceived  herself  into  the 
belief  that  she  was  a  noble  martyr.  How  could  I, 
who  had  fostered  that  delusion,  blame  her  for  it. 
The  coachman,  in  obedience  to  my  command  had 
pulled  up  his  horses.  Before  us  rose  the  rectangular 
mass  of  the  Marienkastel,  and  on  its  right  the 
wooden  crow's  nest  which  over-looked  the  Kastel 
run.  The  sun  shone  brightly  in  the  heavens,  and 
the  royal  conveyance  cast  a  crisp  blue  shadow  on 
the  snow-carpeted  roadway.  All  was  silent  till 
with  a  jingling  of  bells  a  peasant  sleigh  swung  past 
us  with  its  bronzed  occupants  and  a  close  packed 
burden  of  wine  casks.  There  was  a  low  murmured 
salutation  to  my  exalted  companion,  and  the  vehicle 
disappeared  round  a  bend  in  the  road,  leaving  us  to 
ourselves  and  our  agitating  dilemma. 

"  When  doctors  disagree  in  a  matter  of  physical 
health,"  I  said,  "  one  must  rely  on  one's  own  common 
sense.  When  friends  give  divergent  advice  on  a 
moral  question,  the  only  thing  is  to  rely  on  one's 
conscience." 

The  Queen,  who  had  been  gazing  straight  in  front 
of  her  with  a  far-away  look  in  her  eyes,  turned  her 
glance  upon  me. 

"  Is  that  the  only  guide,"  she  said.  **  May  not 
the  heart  speak  also  ?  " 

Her  eyes  were  wet  with  tears,  and  there  was  plead- 


FROST   AND    FRIENDSHIP       151 

ing  in  her  voice.  It  seemed  then,  that  her  affection 
for  the  Grand  Duke  was  genuine,  if  misplaced,  and 
her  appeal  to  me  as  a  sort  of  moral  counsellor 
was  flattering  in  the  extreme. 

'*  The  heart  is  an  unruly  organ,"  I  replied.  '*  No 
one,  not  even  the  Archbishop  of  Weidenbruck,  would 
advise  you  to  let  your  affections  for  the  Grand 
Duke " 

Again  a  hand  was  laid  on  my  arm.  "  I  was  not 
thinking  of  the  Grand  Duke,"  she  said. 

In  a  second  I  had  leaped  from  the  royal  sleigh 
and  was  standing  in  the  snow  of  the  roadway.  I 
was  in  a  dream  and  my  brain  swam  as  the  incredible 
but  unmistakable  purport  of  her  words  forced 
themselves  on  my  staggering  senses.  If  I  needed 
confirmation  of  my  unpleasant  conclusion,  I  could 
read  it  in  the  Queen's  shamefaced  but  appealing 
glance.  A  great  wave  of  disgust  swept  over  me. 
This  woman,  whose  knowledge  of  me  was  of  the 
slightest,  whose  acquaintance  with  me  was  of  the 
briefest,  had  laid  her  sickly,  shallow  soul  at  my  feet, 
to  pick  up  or  trample  on  as  my  fancy  dictated.  True, 
I  had  been  to  blame,  but  the  moral  obliquity  of  a 
gallant  bachelor  compared  to  that  of  a  disloyal  wife  is 
as  the  summer  dew  to  the  torrential  thunder  shower. 
Not,  I  fear,  that  it  was  her  sinfulness  that  disgusted 
me,  so  much  as  the  miserably  fickle  nature  it  sug- 
gested. I  looked  at  the  red-bearded  coachman  on 
the  box.  He  sat  bolt  upright  looking  straight  in 
front  of  him,  but  to  my  excited  fancy  his  ears  seemed 
strained  to  catch  my  answer  to  those  monstrous 
words. 


152      FROST   AND   FRIENDSHIP 

"  You  are  not  thinking  ol  the  Grand  Duke,"  I 
said  sternly  ;  "  then  of  whom  are  you  thinking  ?  " 

"  Of  you,"  she  murmured  almost  inaudibly. 

For  the  moment  I  had  it  in  my  heart  to  strike  her. 

*'  I  thought,"  I  said  contemptuously,  "  that  you 
were  a  religious  woman." 

"  You  misunderstand  me,"  she  said  quickly. 
*'  Before  Heaven  I  am  a  virtuous  woman,  but  my 
heart  cries  out  for  sympathy.  You,  who  know  my 
wretched  fate,  who  understand  me  so  well,  why 
should  you  deny  me  your  sympathy  ?  The  soul 
purifies  all  things." 

"  Even  the  infidelities  of  the  heart,"  I  sneered. 

"  Ah  !     You  are  hard." 

"  As  hard  as  steel,"  I  assented,  "  and  as  true." 

For  a  moment  she  looked  me  full  in  the  face,  and 
I  met  her  glance  without  a  shadow  of  weakening. 
Her  eyes  pleaded,  questioned,  and  received  their 
silent  answer.  If  I  anticipated  a  culminating  burst 
of  tears,  I  was  wrong.  There  was  a  sudden  harden- 
ing of  her  expression,  and  her  eyes  glinted  with 
anger. 

"  Coachman,"  she  cried  harshly  and  in  German, 
"  drive  on  to  the  Marienkcistel." 

For  a  moment  I  stood  there  watching  the  departing 
sleigh.  Then  I  remembered  myself  and  took  off  my 
hat. 


CHAPTER   XII 

MOODILY  I  walked  on  up  the  hill  in  the  track 
of  the  royal  sleigh.  I  was  annoyed,  partly 
by  the  turn  events  had  taken,  and  partly  because  I 
could  hardly,  in  view  of  the  Queen's  presence  at 
the  Marienkastel,  carry  out  my  intention  of  calling 
there.  And  yet  I  was  unwilling  to  be  disappointed 
of  my  bob-sleighing,  unwilling  to  miss  an  oppor- 
tunity of  developing  my  relations  with  the  Princess, 
and  exceedingly  unwilling  to  fail  in  an  appointment 
I  had  made.  Fortune,  however,  delivered  me  out  of 
my  dilemma.  Just  as  I  halted  before  the  castle 
gates  within  which  the  royal  sleigh  was  now  waiting, 
the  sound  of  voices  and  laughter  met  my  ears. 
Looking  round,  I  saw  issuing  from  a  side  door,  the 
Princess  Mathilde,  Max  and  a  small  boy  of  about 
eight  or  nine  years  of  age  attired  in  a  miniature 
replica  of  the  ordinary  tobogganer's  costume. 
The  Princess  hailed  me  with  unaffected  enthu- 
siasm. 

"  Hurrah  !  you  have  come,"  she  cried.  "  Come 
and  help  us  get  the  '  bob  '  out." 

Max  took  a  cigarette  out  of  his  mouth  in  order 


154      FROST    AND    FRIENDSHIP 

to  yawn  more  freely,  and  favoured  me  with  a  nod 
and  a  drawled  **  Good-afternoon." 

"  Oh,  this  is  Stephan,"  went  on  the  Princess. 
"  Stephan,  shake  hands  with  Mr.  Saunders." 

The  little  prince  offered  me  his  hand  with  a  bright 
smile.  He  was  a  handsome,  aristocratic-looking 
httle  fellow,  very  natty  in  his  woollen  jersey  and 
white  leggings,  and  evidently  as  happy  at  the  pros- 
pect of  "  bob-sleighing  "  as  a  healthy-minded  boy 
of  his  years  should  have  been. 

Our  united  efforts  were  employed  in  lugging  the 
bob-sleigh  from  its  shed,  and  bringing  it  on  to  the 
Riefinsdorf  road. 

The  Princess  settled  herself  in  front  placing  her 
feet  firmly  against  the  iron  crossbar  and  grasping 
in  her  hands  the  ends  of  the  steering  gear.  Behind 
her  sat  Stephan,  and  behind  him  myself.  At  the 
end  was  Max  with  the  strong  iron  levers  which 
worked  the  brake  ready  to  either  hand. 

They  have  a  regular  bob-sleigh  track  now  at 
Weissheim,  but  in  those  days  we  '*  bobbed  "  down 
the  ordinary  road,  a  nuisance  to  horse-sleighs  and 
a  danger  to  pedestrians.  Nevertheless  it  was  an 
extremely  enjoyable  experience.  At  first  the  "  bob  " 
hardly  moved  over  the  hard  rutty  snow,  and  we  had 
to  work  our  bodies  backwards  and  forwards  in  unison 
Uke  rowers  in  a  boat,  to  jerk  our  heavy  craft  onward 
down  the  slight  incUne.  Then  little  by  little  the 
pace  began  to  increase,  and  we  travelled  smoothly 
and  fairly  rapidly  down  the  long  gradual  hill.  There 
was  no  question  of  "  braking  "  yet,  but  our  speed 
increased  steadily  if  slowly,  and  as  the  air  beat 


FROST   AND    FRIENDSHIP       155 

against  our  faces  and  the  white  road  slid  away  from 
beneath  us,  httle  Stephan  gave  vent  to  cries  of 
satisfaction    and    delight. 

"  Isn't  it  lovely,"  cried  the  Princess. 

"  We  have  nothing  like  it  in  London,"  I  replied, 
thinking  of  City  Atlases  and  the  Twopenny  Tube. 

"Lean  to  the  right,"  cried  out  Max  suddenly, 
and  at  the  command  we  swung  our  bodies  as  far 
over  as  we  dared  and  stretched  out  our  right  arms 
to  their  full  extent.  The  result  was  that  we  got 
round  a  sharp  bend  of  the  road  without  the  necessity 
of  braking,  and  the  speed  we  had  developed  was 
unchecked.  We  were  progressing  now  at  a  con- 
siderable pace  and  the  farther  we  went  the  swifter 
grew  our  course.  The  fascination  of  speed  is  one 
that  appeals,  passively  or  actively,  to  almost  every- 
one, and  that  swift  rush  through  perfect  air  is  a  thing 
I  shall  not  hastily  forget.  There  was  incident  too, 
as  well  as  the  matchless  spectacle  of  snowy  pines 
and  gleaming  declivities.  Every  turn  of  the  road 
was  an  occasion  for  leaning  over  to  one  side  with 
the  possibility  of  a  rough  upset  if  the  brakesman's 
judgment  failed  him  or  the  hand  of  the  steerer 
temporarily  lost  its  cunning.  But  Max  was  a  clever 
if  apparently  reckless  brakesman,  and  though  once 
or  twice  in  rounding  corners  we  went  perilously 
near  the  edge  of  the  roadway,  he  always  saved  us 
from  disaster  by  judiciously  checking  our  speed 
for  a  moment  and  then  letting  us  rip  along  again 
down  the  straight  with  a  velocity  that  fairly  took 
my  breath  away.  Just  as  we  were  passing  the 
Brun-varad    we    sighted    a     horse-sleigh     heavily 


156      FROST    AND"  FRIENDSHIP 

laden  with  sacks  of  com  toiling  up  the  road  in  the 
opposite  direction  to  ourselves. 

"  Achtung !  "  cried  the  Princess  shrilly,  as  we 
flew  along  towards  the  slow  labouring  conyevance, 
but  the  sleepy  driver  paid  no  attention  to  the  cry. 

"  Achtung  !  "  came  httle  Stephan's  high  treble 
and  Max's  angry  bass  simultaneously,  and  the  man 
pulled  hurriedly  at  his  horse's  head. 

**  Brake,  Max  !  "  cried  the  Princess,  and  I  felt  the 
tail  end  of  the  bob  raised  up  as  the  strong  iron 
teeth  were  driven  suddenly  and  fiercely  into  the 
firm  snow.  Our  pace  was  checked  considerably, 
but  we  were  still  travelling  at  an  alarmingly  high 
speed.  My  heart  was  in  my  mouth,  for  the  sleigh 
had  not  had  time  to  pull  properly  out  of  our  way, 
and  it  seemed  to  me  that  we  must  either  go  into 
the  horse  on  one  side  or  charge  the  snow  bank  which 
masked  the  precipice  on  the  other.  What  would  be 
our  fate  in  the  latter  event  I  had  happily  no  time  to 
think.  As  a  matter  of  fact  a  bob-sleigh  is  a  narrow 
craft  and  we  had  a  gap  of  a  few  feet  between  the 
equine  Scylla  and  the  niveous  Charybdis,  and 
through  this  the  Princess  steered  us  with  the  nerve 
of  a  veteran  and  the  heart  of  a  Valkyrie. 

"  Brake  off !  "  shouted  the  dauntless  Mathilde. 

"  Well  steered,"  I  breathed,  peering  ahead  for 
fresh  obstacles  to  our  lightning  descent. 

As  we  neared  the  town  of  Weissheim  the  road 
broadened  and  the  descent  became  perceptibly 
gentler.  Slower  and  slower  grew  our  course,  till 
finally,  as  we  came  to  a  tall  red  post  bearing  the 
laconic  inscription  : — 


FROST    AND    FRIENDSHIP       157 
SCHRITT 

BUSSE,   2   KRONEN 

Max  put  on  the  brake  and  brought  our  trusty  craft 
to  a  standstill. 

"  We  mustn't  '  bob '  through  the  town,"  ex- 
plained the  Princess  as  we  regained  our  feet,  and 
proceeded  to  tow  the  weighty  sleigh  through  the 
almost  level  main  street  of  the  town. 

"  Under  a  penalty  of  two  Krone,"  I  supplemented. 

"  Two  Krone  be  hanged  !  "  said  Max.  "  We 
don't  want  to  offend  the  Biirgerschaft.  That's  the 
worst  of  these  infernal  politics." 

"  And  you  like  '  bobbing,'  Stephan  ?  "  I  asked. 

"  It's  lovely,"  he  replied.  "  I  like  passing  the 
sleighs,   don't  you  ?  " 

"  Immensely,"  I  replied.  "  Like  you,  I  have 
nerves  of  iron." 

After  we  had  passed  through  the  town  and  had 
got  as  far  as  the  Pariserhof,  we  settled  ourselves 
on  the  '  bob  '  again  and  commenced  the  second  half 
of  our  downward  journey.  The  way  was  steeper 
now  than  it  had  been  before,  the  corners  sharper, 
and  the  precipices  more  alarmingly  abrupt.  Never- 
theless Max  and  his  sister  performed  their  respective 
duties  with  coolness  and  precision,  and  we  glided 
swiftly  but  safely  past  Riefinsdorf  and  along  the 
Heldersburg  road  till  we  came  to  the  spot  where  I 
had  met  the  Princess  on  the  previous  afternoon. 
Here  the  declivity  ended  and  a  slight  ascent  com- 
menced,   so   disembarking   once   more   we   pulled 


158      FROST    AND    FRIENDSHIP 

the  bob-sleigh  to  the  edge  of  the  road  and  sur- 
veyed the  scene. 

"That  straight  bit  just  after  Riefinsdorf  was 
good,  wasn't  it  ?  "  said  the  Princess  wiping  her 
streaming  eyes. 

"  It  enables  me  to  comprehend  the  expression 
I  saw  on  a  man's  face  to-day  when  he  spoke  of 
tobogganing,"  I  replied.  "  He  seemed  intoxicated 
with  a  debauch  of  speed." 

**  You  should  go  down  the  Kastel  run,"  put  in  Max, 
"  if  you  want  speed.  You  go  twice  as  fast  as  bob- 
sleighing. Eighty  miles  an  hour  with  your  nose 
within  twelve  inches  of  the  ice  is  a  tolerably  exciting 
sensation  for  the  uninitiated.'' 

"  Festina  lente,"  I  said,  "  which  being  interpreted 
means,  don't  try  the  Kastel  run  till  you've  practised 
on  the  Thai  or  the  Children's  run." 

"  Miss  Anchester  told  me  you  proposed  going 
down  the  Kastel  run  straight  away,"  said  the 
Princess. 

"  Miss  Anchester,"  I  retorted,  "  has  no  right  to 
repeat  the  foolish  statements  of  a  presumptuous 
novice." 

At  this  moment  a  sleigh  appeared  on  the  scene 
travelling  in  the  direction  of  Riefinsdorf  andWeiss- 
heim. 

Max  stopped  it  and  bargained  with  the  driver 
to  take  our  bob-sleigh  in  tow  as  far  as  the  Marien- 
kastel.  A  satisfactory  arrangement  having  been 
come  to  we  tied  the  "  bob  "  to  the  tail  of  the  sleigh 
and,  seating  ourselves  thereon,  enjoyed  the  calm 
delights  of  a  secure  and  unexcitingly  placid  ride. 


FROST    AND    FRIENDSHIP       159 

As  we  passed  the  Brun-varad  on  our  upward  journey 
the  sound  of  firing  met  our  ears.  I  should  have  paid 
the  matter  no  consideration  whatever  but  for  the 
look  of  anxious  inquiry  which  the  Princess  darted 
towards   her   brother. 

"  It's  only  the  soldiers  firing  at  the  ice  target  on 
the  Nonnensee,"  replied  Max,  in  answer  to  her  look, 
and  the  elaborate  yawn  which  followed  his  remarks 
would  have  convinced  me  that  his  prosaic  explan- 
ation was  the  true  one,  had  not  something  occurred 
to  re-arouse  my  latent  apprehension.  There  was 
a  sleigh  drawn  up  by  the  roadside,  and  as  we  passed 
it  the  emblazoned  panels  of  the  door  attracted  my 
attention.  Looking  up,  I  saw  that  it  was  the  identi- 
cal vehicle  in  which  I  had  journeyed  towards  the 
Marienkastel  that  afternoon,  and  what  was  more, 
that  the  Queen  herself  was  in  it,  standing  up  and 
gazing  steadfastly  at  the  direction  from  which  the 
sound  of  firing  proceeded.  Her  face  was  pale,  her 
expression  one  of  tense  anxiety,  and  as  a  spluttering 
series  of  shots  rang  out  in  quick  succession,  her  lips 
moved  with  the  involuntary  utterance  of  extreme 
agitation.  I  looked  at  the  red-bearded  coachman. 
To  my  surprise  he  seemed  as  agitated  as  the  Queen 
herself.  His  body  was  twisted  on  the  box,  his  dark 
eyes  seemed  starting  from  his  head,  while  his  right 
hand  clutched  the  brake  lever  as  if  in  an  agony  of 
apprehension.  The  whole  thing  was  absolutely  in- 
comprehensible to  me. 

"  What  is  it  ?  "  I  demanded. 

"  They  are  shooting  at  the  ice  target  on  the  Non- 
nensee," drawled  Max,  and  yawned  again. 


i6o      FROST   AND   FRIENDSHIP 

The  Princess  Mathilda  shivered.  Whatever  it 
was,  I  was  powerless  to  interfere,  and  I  could  only 
trust  and  pray  that  either  Max's  explanation  was 
true,  or  that  if  violence  had  been  attempted  against 
any  innocent  person,  it  had  failed  of  its  object. 

Slowly  we  toiled  up  to  the  gates  of  the  Marien- 
kastel,  and  then,  casting  loose  from  the  friendly 
sleigh,  we  essayed  a  second  run  in  the  direction  of 
Riefinsdorf.  This  time  I  felt  neither  pleasure  in 
speed  nor  apprehension  for  possible  disaster.  My 
thoughts  were  busy  in  another  channel.  The  sound 
of  firing  had  ceased  now,  the  royal  sleigh  had  passed 
on  its  way  back  to  the  Brun-varad,  but  the  vision 
of  the  Queen's  agitated  form,  the  remembrance  of 
the  coachman's  writhing  apprehension,  haunted  my 
brain  with  a  chilling,  disquieting  insistence. 

That  some  player  in  the  restless  drama  of  Grimland 
politics  had  been  the  mark  of  those  vicious  rifle 
shots  I  felt  convinced.  Humble  or  exalted,  a  friend 
to  King  Karl  or  a  foe,  I  had  no  means  of  knowing. 
Had  he  escaped,  I  wondered,  or  was  some  poor 
fellow's  life  blood  staining  the  virgin  snow,  some 
wound  mortifying  in  that  terribly  frosty  air  A 
shEirp  curve  of  the  road  brought  the  whole  range 
of  the  Klauigberg  before  us,  a  dazzling  trinity  of 
mighty  summits  piercing  the  violet  sky.  What  a 
pity  it  was,  I  reflected,  that  such  a  beautiful  coun- 
try should  be  spoilt  by  the  reckless  machinations 
of  insignificant  men.  If  the  snowclad  peaks  that 
faced  us  had  any  lesson  for  mankind  it  was  assuredly 
peace  and  stability  they  preached.  I  could  under- 
stand the  men  of  the  desert  being  fierce,  the  northern 


FROST   AND    FRIENDSHIP      i6i 

sea-farers  cruel,  the  dwellers  about  the  Mediter- 
ranean sensuous  and  slothful,  But  here,  if  nature 
can  at  all  affect  the  minds  of  men,  the  people  should 
have  been  calmly  virile,  steadfastly  loyal,  stainless 
of  crime  as  the  unblemished  snows  of  their  towering 
hillsides,  pure  in  their  affections  as  the  clear  sweet 
colours  of  their  chastely  glowing  sunsets.  I  thought 
of  South  Kensington  with  its  red  brick  terraces, 
its  stucco  crescents,  its  formal  abhorrence  of  nature 
and  natural  objects,  and  I  reflected  that  there  was 
greater  virtue  and  more  effective  energy  behind  those 
pseudo-classical  porches,  within  those  imitation  wal- 
nut doors,  than  in  the  whole  range  of  this  unmarred 
countryside.  It  was  not  tiU  we  came  to  the  straight 
bit  just  beyond  Riefinsdorf  that  I  regained  a  nor- 
mally cheerful  outlook,  the  extra  bit  of  speed 
driving  the  moody  thoughts  out  of  my  head  and 
forcing  me  to  realise  that  there  are  worse  things  in 
the  world  than  tearing  down  a  snow  slope  at  forty 
mile  an  hour  with  a  young  and  beautiful  princess 
steering  you  to  a  safe  termination.  As  we  came  to 
a  stop  the  Princess  looked  round  at  me  and  laughed. 

"  You  look  very  red  in  the  face,"  she  said. 

"  We  all  wear  a  good  colour,"  I  replied,  which, 
with  the  exception  of  Max,  was  true  enough. 

"  I  did  not  say  you  were  a  good  colour,"  she  re- 
torted, "  I  said  you  were  very  red.  I  don't  admire 
red  men." 

"  I  should  be  glad  to  know  your  idea  of  manly 
beauty,"  I  said.  "  Is  it  something  white  with  spots 
on  it  ?  " 

"  Don't  be  horrid,"  she  said,  as  we  turned  our 

L 


i62      FROST   AND    FRIENDSHIP 

steps  again  towards  Riefinsdorf,  where  we  counted 
on  getting  a  horse  to  drag  the  bob-sleigh  back  to 
its  home  at  the  Marienkastel.  "  I  hke  men  with 
aquiline  noses  and  big  black  moustaches.  There  is 
a  magnificent  creature  who  teaches  skating  on  the 
Pariserhof  rinks  whom  I  am  desperately  in  love 
with." 

"  All  girls  go  through  that  stage,"  I  said  quietly, 
"  you  will  get  over  it." 

"Oh,  I  hate  you." 

"  You  will  get  over  that  too." 

**  I  suppose  you  think  I  shall  fall  in  love  with 
you." 

"  That,"  I  said  more  calmly  than  ever,  "  is  one 
of  the  things  you  will  not  get  over." 

The  Princess  raised  her  arm  as  if  to  strike  me  in 
mock  anger,  but  remembering  that  we  were  almost 
strangers  restrained  herself. 

"  I  wish  it  would  thaw,"  she  said. 

"  Why  ?  " 

*'  Because  then  I  could  make  snowballs  to  throw 
at  you.'* 

I  laughed  at  the  whimsical  connexion  of  ideas, 
and  the  Princess,  to  whom  laughter  was  as  necessary 
as  air  and  food,  laughed  too. 

She  ceased  abruptly  and  of  a  sudden  the  twinkUng 
black  eyes  grew  fixed  and  apprehensive. 

I  followed  her  gaze,  and  what  I  saw  swept  out  the 
merriment  from  my  heart  in  an  instant,  and  brought 
back  the  dark  and  gloomy  meditations  with  a 
rush. 

A  small  sleigh  was  being  pulled  along  the  road  by 


FROST   AND    FRIENDSHIP       163 

a  couple  of  peasants,  and  on  it  lay  something  covered, 
but  not  concealed,  by  a  white  sheet. 

Beside  it  walked  a  group  of  high-booted,  sombrely- 
clad  police  officials,  and  I  noticed  that  people  who 
passed  the  sleigh  cast  a  glance  of  curiosity  and  pity 
on  its  burden,  and  doffed  their  hats. 

We  stood  aside  to  let  it  pass,  and  as  Max  and  I 
removed  our  caps,  the  Princess  took  Stephan's 
woollen^covering  from  his  head. 


CHAPTER   XIII 

WE  walked  as  far  as  the  palace  in  silence.  The 
Princess  was  obviously  dejected,  and,  I 
myself  the  prey  to  a  depression  I  could  neither 
analyse  nor  understand.  The  mute  rigid  thing  on 
the  sleigh  had  seemed  a  terrible  rebuke  to  my  ill- 
timed  flippancy.  In  the  midst  of  danger  and 
passionate  hatred,  scheming  and  sudden  death,  I 
had  indulged  in  those  frivolous  inanities  which  are 
in  place,  if  anywhere,  only  in  the  environment  of 
a  trebly  secure  and  over-polished  civilisation. 
Here,  face  to  face  with  nature  and  the  primitive 
passions  of  violent  men,  I  felt  ashamed  of  myself 
for  my  levity,  and  true  to  Miss  Anchester's  opinion 
of  me  as  a  man  of  unstable  mind,  fell  into  a  train 
of  unnecessarily  pessimistic  reflection.  At  the 
gates  of  the  Brun-varad  we  parted  with  a  curtly 
spoken  farewell,  and  ringing  the  great  bell  I  was 
admitted  into  the  Palace.  In  a  corner  of  the  hall 
Miss  Anchester  was  engaged  in  giving  the  young 
Prince  of  Weissheim  and  the  Princess  a  lesson  in 
English  grammar.  Leaving  her  charges  at  my 
entry  she  crossed  the  hall  to  meet  me. 

"  The  King  would  like  to  see  you,  Mr.  Saunders," 
she  said  quietly.  "  He  is  in  the  Schweigen- 
kammer." 

A  distinct  feeling  of  relief  swept  over  me  at  her 
words.    My  host  at  any  rate  had  not  suffered  from 


FROST   AND    FRIENDSHIP       165 

the  lawless  violence  of  the  day,  and  my  joy  at  his 
immunity  caused  me  to  realise  that  much  of  my 
depression  had  been  a  sub-conscious  anxiety  for 
the  royal  person. 

"  Thank  you,"  I  said  simply,  preparing  to  mount 
the  stairs  in  the  direction  of  the  "  silent  chamber." 

"  I  hope  you  enjoyed  your  drive  with  the  Queen 
this  afternoon,"  pursued  the  Governess  in  an  under- 
tone, as  I  half  turned  away  to  accomplish  my 
errand.  I  looked  inquiringly  into  her  countenance, 
but  searched  in  vain  for  a  malicious  twinkle  in  her 
eyes. 

"  Very  much,  thank  you." 

"  And  I  trust,"  she  went  on  severely,  "  that  you 
have  disabused  your  mind  of  the  foolish  fancies 
which  were  troubling  it." 

I  laughed  gently.  "  Quite,  "  I  answered.  "  The 
mystery  of  the  carnations  is  explained,  and  if  the 
explanation  wounds  my  vanity,  it  is  because  my 
vanity  was  so  puffed  up  that  a  prick  was  necessary." 

The  Governess  was  obviously  puzzled. 

"  I  thought,"  I  went  on,  "  that  I  was  the  recipient 
of  a  favour  from  a  Queen,  whereas  I  was  merely 
receiving  the  attentions  of  a  Princess.  It  was  the 
Princess  Mathilde  who  sent  me  those  flowers,  and 
the  mystic  inscription  which  I  was  dull  enough 
to  misconstrue,  was  merely  a  playful  reminder  of 
my  promise  to  bob-sleigh  with  the  youthful  Schat- 
tenbergs  this  afternoon." 

Miss  Anchester  looked  more  astonished  than  ever. 

"  Is  that  really  true  ?  "  she  asked. 

I  had  no  wish  to  deceive  her,  so  smiling  and 


i66      FROST    AND    FRIENDSHIP 

looking  her  straight  in  the  face  I  answered,  "  What 
explanation  could  be  more  simple — or  more  im- 
probable." 

For  a  moment  her  grey  eyes  rested  on  me  ques- 
tioningly :  then  they  softened,  and  for  the  first 
time  I  read  in  them  approval.  She  understood, 
and  vaguely  I  felt  that  I  had  scored. 

"  The  Princess  is  a  sweet  girl,"  she  said,  with  a 
laudable  effort  to  obtain  continuity  of  speech  if  not 
of  thought. 

"Don't  say  that,"  I  replied,  mounting  the  stairs, 
"  I  abominate  '  sweet '  girls." 

I  found  the  door  of  the  Schweigenkammer  open, 
and  inside,  the  King,  General  Meyer,  and  Herr 
Schneider  seated  at  the  fateful  Zaubertisch.  The 
two  former  were  enjoying  big  seidles  of  Lager  beer, 
while  the  detective  was  sipping  tea  from  a  small 
blue  and  gold  cup.  On  my  arrival  the  General 
rose  and  closed  the  door. 

'*  I  have  to  thank  you,  Saunders,"  began  his 
Majesty,  "  for  your  behaviour  this  afternoon." 

I  was  genuinely  puzzled  by  this  speech  and  doubt- 
less showed  it. 

"  I  mean,"  pursued  the  King,  "  for  your  behaviour 
towards  her  Majesty." 

"  At  lunch  ?  " 

"  After  lunch." 

"  Her  Majesty  has  told  you  of  our  conversation 
whilst  driving  to  the  Marienkastel  ?  "  I  said  more 
bewildered  than  ever. 

"  Not  a  word,"  said  the  King,  "  but  Herr  Schneider 
has  given  me  a  faithful  and  detailed  account  of  it." 


FROST   AND    FRIENDSHIP      167 

"  Herr  Schneider  !  " 

"  The  red-bearded  coachman,"  put  in  the  detec- 
tive triumphantly  "  Doubtless  you  imagined  him 
to  be  the  same  man  who  drove  you  yesterday  to 
Heldersburg." 

"  No,"  I  retorted,  "  I  did  not.  My  driver  of 
yesterday  had  a  straight  flat  nose  and  grey  eyes. 
However  it  did  not  occur  to  me  that  it  was  you." 

"  You  are  observant,"  said  Schneider  pleasantly. 
"  Few  people  have  eyes  in  their  heads,  fewer  still 
brains  behind  their  eyes." 

"  You  certainly  behaved  well  in  a  trying  situa- 
tion," continued  the  King,  "  I  am  sorry  that  any 
guest  of  mine  should  have  been  put  to  such  annoy- 
ance. I  only  trust  that  you  will  not  sicken  of  our 
curious  habits  in  these  parts  and  leave  us  desolate. 
Loyalty  is  at  a  premium  just  now  at  Weissheim." 

King  Karl  certainly  had  a  very  pleasant  way  of 
putting  things,  and  assuredly  I  was  far  too  interested 
in  the  situation  to  desire  to  put  myself  out  of  touch 
with  it. 

"  I  ask  nothing  better  than  to  continue  to  enjoy 
your  Majesty's  hospitality,"  I  said. 

"  After  all,"  said  the  King,  "  an  eventful  exis- 
tence has  its  charm,  even  for  me,  who  enjoy  few 
lucid  intervals  of  placidity.  To-day,  for  instance, 
I  was  fired  upon." 

"  The  shots  I  heard  whilst  bob-sleighing  !  " 

"  No  doubt.  I  don't  much  mind  being  fired  at,  but 
I  don't  take  it  kindly  from  my  own  Guards.  We 
were  ski-ing  on  the  lower  slopes  of  the  Klaninberg, 
I,  Meyer,  and  my  guide  Otto,  and  the  Guards  were 


i68      FROST   AND    FRIENDSHIP 

practising  at  the  ice  target  on  the  Nonnensee  some 
couple  of  hundred  feet  beneath  us.  They  are  good 
shots,  these  fellows,  and  the  bullets  whistled  round 
us  like  hailstones.  Poor  Otto  was  shot  through 
the  lungs.     Meyer  and  myself  were  untouched." 

"  And  yet,"  sneered  the  General,  "  King  Karl 
does  not  believe  in  the  Divine  right  of  Kings." 

"  No,  nor  yet  in  the  Divine  right  of  Commanders- 
in-chief,"  snapped  the  King.  "  Otto  was  a  brave 
man.  He  strove  to  place  his  body  between  mine 
and  the  direction  of  the  bullets." 

"  He  has  his  reward,"  said  the  General.  "  A 
noble  death — one  can  ask  nothing  better  of  Fate. 
My  only  regret  is  that  my  indifferent  skill  as  a  skier 
left  me  so  far  behind  your  Majesty  that  I  was  unable 
to  afford  protection  to  your  sacred  person." 

"  When  we  saw  that  Otto  was  beyond  human 
assistance,"  went  on  the  King.  "  We  took  cover 
as  quick  as  we  could  in  a  pine  wood.  We  did  not 
waste  time,  I  assure  you,  and  General  Meyer  devel- 
oped an  amazing  turn  of  speed  for  an  ordinarily 
poor  ski-er." 

"I  trust,"  said  the  detective,  "  that  your  Majesty's 
objections  to  removing  the  Guards  to  another 
portion  of  your  dominions  is  now  overcome." 

"You  forget,"  said  the  King  drUy,  "that  the 
incident  has  been  satisfactorily  explained.  I  have 
received  a  note  from  the  Colonel  regretting  that  a 
chance  shot  from  one  of  his  men  should  have  gone 
wide  of  the  target,  and  fatally  wounded  one  of  my 
retainers.  The  dear  Duke's  expressions  of  regret 
are  most  pathetic." 


FROST    AND    FRIENDSHIP       169 

The  detective  rose  excitedly  to  his  feet. 

"  I  saw  the  whole  thing  from  the  box-seat  of 
the  royal  sleigh,"  he  cried  with  a  dramatic  wave 
of  his  right  hand.  "  I  saw  the  officer  in  command 
pointing  out  the  objects  for  his  men  to  aim  their 
murderous  bullets  at.  The  Queen  saw  it,  her 
agitation  was  supreme.  She  sobbed  bitterly  all 
the  way  home." 

"  Doubtless,"  sneered  the  King.  "  I  was  missed." 

"  Her  Majesty  was  not  in  the  plot,"  retorted  Herr 
Schneider. 

"  How  do  you  know  ?  " 

"  Because  I  have  looked  into  her  heart.  There 
is  no  murder  there  yet." 

"  I  fancy  you  are  right,"  said  the  King  wearily. 
*'  Her  Majesty  is  not  a  courageous  woman." 

"  All  the  same,"  said  General  Meyer  slowly, 
"  I  am  inclined  to  agree  with  Herr  Schneider's 
advice  on  the  subject  of  removing  the  Guards." 

"  And  what  do  you  say  Saunders  ?  "  asked  the 
King. 

Flattered  at  having  my  advice  demanded  on 
such  a  matter,  I  gave  it  to  the  best  of  my  ability. 

"  It  is  the  only  possible  course,  sire,"  I  said. 

*'  So  be  it,"  said  the  King  gloomily.  "  I  will 
give  the  necessary  order.  By  the  way,  Meyer, 
with  what  regiment  do  you  propose  to  replace 
them  ?  " 

"  The  third  regiment  of  Guards,"  answered  the 
General  after  a  moment's  thought.  "  They  are 
recruited  from  the  loyal  and  primitive  district  of 
Dunkelstein.    They  would  do  as  well  as  any  other." 


170      FROST   AND    FRIENDSHIP 

*'  Very  good  then.  We  will  have  them  here. 
Only  I  must  keep  Fritz  at  the  Marienkastel." 

"  I  am  sure  your  Majesty  is  acting  wisely,"  said 
the  detective,  sitting  down  again  and  noisily  finishing 
his  tea.  "  When  your  coat  has  a  single  hole  in  it 
it  ceases  to  be  weatherproof.  The  loyalty  of  the 
Guards  should  be  absolute  or  their  title  becomes  a 
mockery." 

I  saw  the  King's  frown  deepen  at  the  detective's 
glib  moralising.  His  spirit  had  been  almost  as 
badly  wounded  as  poor  Otto's  body,  and  Schneider, 
like  many  exceedingly  clever  men,  lacked  tact. 

"  You  need  not  stay,  Saunders,"  said  the  King, 
"  if  you  don't  care  to.  We  are  going  into  the 
details  of  various  schemes  for  the  protection  of  my 
worthless  carcass.  You  are  quite  welcome  to  our 
confidences,  but  I  fear  they  would  only  bore  you. 
I  really  wanted  to  thank  you  for  having  behaved 
like  what  you  are,  an  English  gentleman." 

I  left  the  strange  trio  to  their  protective  schem- 
ings.  Schneider  was  pulling  out  a  bundle  of  papers 
from  his  pocket.  General  Meyer  was  unrolling  a 
large  scale  map  of  Grimland,  while  between  them, 
emptying  the  last  drops  of  his  Lager  beer,  was  the 
whimsical,  pathetic  figure  of  King  Karl. 

It  wanted  still  an  hour  and  a  half  before  dinner- 
time, and  after  a  moment's  dehberation  I  turned 
my  steps  in  the  direction  of  my  own  sitting-room 
with  the  intention  of  writing  a  letter  or  two,  and 
maybe  playing  a  game  of  Patience.  In  the  corridor 
leading  to  my  chamber  a  tall  figure  in  a  long  black 
cassock    was   walking   rapidly    towcirds    me.    His 


FROST   AND    FRIENDSHIP       171 

head  was  bent  as  if  in  thought,  but  as  he^drew  near 
I  had  no  difficulty  in  recognising  in  him  the  King's 
chaplain,  the  priest  whom  the  Grand  Duke  Fritz 
had  so  truculently  insulted  a  couple  of  evenings 
before.  As  I  passed,  his  proud  eyes  flashed  a  glance 
at  me  and  he  went  by  with  an  almost  imperceptible 
gesture  of  salutation.  Then,  as  if  my  image  had 
conveyed  a  tardy  recognition  to  his  brain,  he  stopped 
and  called  after  me,  "  Herr  Saunders." 

"  Your  reverence." 

"  I  beg  your  pardon,  I  am  Father  Bemhard." 

"  The  King's  chaplain  ?  " 

"  And  the  Queen's  confessor.  Can  you  spare 
me  a  few  minutes  ?  " 

"  I  can  spare  you  exactly  an  hour  and  a  half." 

"  Less  will  be  necessary.  Kindly  accompany 
me  to  my  apartments." 

I  followed  the  dark  striding  form  down  several 
corridors  and  up  many  stairs,  for  Father  Bernhard's 
apartments,  as  he  called  them,  was  a  small  room 
at  the  extreme  top  of  the  Waffenthurm.  The 
four  walls  were  bare  save  for  a  black  crucifix  over 
the  narrow  bedstead,  and  there  was  no  heating 
apparatus  whatever  in  the  room.  The  double  win- 
dows were  wide  open  and  it  was  bitterly  cold,  but 
the  priest  neither  offered  to  shut  them  nor  apolo- 
gised for  the  inhospitable  severity  of  his  cham- 
ber. 

"  Mr.  Saunders,"  he  began,  motioning  me  to  a 
particularly  uncomfortable  chair,  "  you  are,  I 
suppose,  a  Protestant." 

"  I  am." 


172       FROST   AND    FRIENDSHIP 

"  Good.  I  am  a  broad-minded  man,  and  I  regard 
your  chance  of  Heaven  as  good  as  mine.  Neither 
do  I  suppose  that  good  morals  are  the  exclusive 
possession  of  what  we  arrogantly  term,  '  Good 
Catholics.'  I  have  had  painful  evidence  to  the 
contrary." 

"  The  creed  has  yet  to  be  enunciated  which  can 
turn  men  into  plaster  saints,"  I  replied. 

"  Don't  scoff  at  religion,  Mr.  Saunders,"  said 
the  priest  hastily.  "  True  faith  works  miracles 
far  more  wonderful  than  all  the  winking  pictures 
and  healing  relics  which  impose  on  the  credulity 
of  the  ignorant  multitude." 

"  I  was  not  scoffing,"  I  replied  in  easy  self-de- 
fence. "  I  merely  stated  the  obvious  fact  that 
implicit  faith  and  unimpeachable  virtue  do  not 
invariably  walk  hand-in-hand.  Why,  when  people 
believe  in  Heaven  as  the  reward  for  a  virtuous 
Ufe,  sin  should  have  any  attraction  for  them,  or 
death  any  terrors,  is  a  mystery  that  I  cannot  even 
begin  to  grapple  with." 

"  Perhaps  you  don't  believe  in  the  Devil." 

"  I  do  not." 

"  Then  that  accounts  for  your  blindness.  The 
Devil  is  a  roaring  lion,  a  real,  personal,  living  force, 
and  until  you  accept  that  elementary  fact  your 
theology  and  your  whole  moral  outlook  will  be 
misty  and  confused." 

"  Very  possibly,"  I  replied,  "  but  I  take  it  that 
you  did  not  invite  me  here  to  talk  theology  or 
demonology." 

"  No,"  said  the  priest  fixing  his  gaze  steadily 


FROST   AND    FRIENDSHIP       173 

upon  me,  *'  but  the  question  is  a  moral  one.  I 
want  you  to  leave  Weissheim — at  once." 

"  That  is  a  question  of  convenience  and  Brad- 
shaw — hardly  of  morals." 

"  I  do  not  think  you  misunderstand  me,"  he 
retorted,  still  looking  fixedly  at  me. 

I  did  not.  This  man  was  the  keeper  of  the  Queen's 
conscience  and  his  meaning  was  clear. 

"  There  are  reasons — moral  reasons — why  I  should 
remain,"  I  replied  after  a  pause. 

"  Remember,"  he  said,  "  that  with  temptation 
the  truest  courage  is  to  fly  rather  than  to  fight." 

"With  temptation,  yes,"  I  retorted  calmly, 
"  but  there  is  no  temptation." 

His  high  forehead  wrinkled  with  mystification. 
He  was  obviously  incredulous,  but  my  statement 
had  been  a  definite  one,  and  he  was  too  polite  to 
give  me  the  lie  direct. 

"  What  am  I  to  believe  ?  "  he  asked. 

"  What  are  the  alternatives  ?  "  I  countered.  "  My 
plain  statement,  my  word  of  honour  if  you  will, 
on  one  hand.  On  the  other,  the  fanciful  assevera- 
tion of  a  hysterical  femme  incomprise" 

"  The  Queen  is  a  beautiful  woman,"  persisted 
Father  Bemhard. 

"  And  I,  no  doubt,  a  weak  man.  Nevertheless, 
I  did  not  come  to  Weissheim  in  search  of  female 
beauty,  and  if  I  had,  there  is  fresher,  healthier 
beauty  here  than  that  of  her  most  painted  Majesty." 

He  ignored  my  flippancy  absolutely.  "  You 
are  a  man  of  the  world  ?  "  he  asked  at  length. 

"  If  you  will,"  I  answered  with  a  shrug. 


174      FROST   AND    FRIENDSHIP 

"  And  I  a  priest,  sworn  to  chastity,  and  fortified 
by  an  unshakeable  faith  in  my  holy  calling.     And 

yet  I  tell  you,  that  I "  he  broke  off  suddenly  as 

if  in  pain. 

"  Why  was  I  nearly  giving  you  my  confidence  ?  " 
he  asked.  "  You  must  have  a  very  inviting  dis- 
position." 

Again  I  shrugged  my  shoulders. 

"  Your  confession  was  as  good  as  made,"  I  said. 
"  You  are  human  and  feel  some  admiration  for 
the  Queen." 

"  Some  admiration  !  "  he  repeated  scornfully. 
"  That  is  hardly  the  word.  I  contemn  her  utterly 
in  my  thoughts,  I  reprove  her  daily  in  my  words, 
cmd  yet  I  tell  you  that  that  woman's  image  is 
branded  on  my  soul  to  the  obliteration  of  all,  or 
nearly  all,  that  was  ever  good  therein." 

"  Nonsense,"  I  said  good-naturedly.  "  You  are 
a  very  good  man,  and  like  most  good  men  are  exceed- 
ingly simple.  Your  wrap  your  poor  little  heart 
in  swaddling  clothes  to  protect  it  from  the  evil 
winds  that  blow,  and  when,  poor  delicate  thing, 
it  meets  a  faint,  sickly  breath  of  sentiment  it  suffers 
from  acute  inflammation.  Treat  your  feelings 
as  you  do  your  body,"  I  went  on,  pointing  to  the 
open  window,  "  expose  them  to  the  four  winds 
of  heaven,  and  they  will  harden  and  grow  healthy. 
Try  and  be  normally  human.  Shut  your  eyes  to 
temptation  like  a  priest,  and  it  becomes  a  roaring 
devil.  Open  your  eyes  to  it  Uke  a  man,  and  you 
will  see  what  rotten  stuff  it's  really  made  of." 

Father  Bemhard    smiled  sadly.     "  Behold  !  "  he 


FROST   AND   FRIENDSHIP       175 

said,  "  the  layman  preaches  to  the  priest,  and  what 
is  more,  I  beHeve  he  is  the  better  preacher  of  the 
two."  He  sighed  heavily.  "  I  can  take  it,  then 
that  your  affection  for  the  Queen  is  not  serious.'* 

"  Man  alive ! "  I  cried  laughing,  "it  is  non- 
existent. We  have  hundreds  like  her  in  London 
only  we  do  not  call  them  Queens." 

The  priest  rose  to  his  feet  with  a  look  of  reproof, 
and  then  paced  his  narrow  chamber  with  long 
strides. 

"  My  mind  is  warped,"  he  cried  bitterly.  "  Be- 
cause that  woman's  image  is  planted  in  my  morbid 
and  unhealthy  soul  I  cannot  realize  that  you  are 
free  from  a  similar  obsession." 

"  Why  don't  you  practise  what  you  preach  ? 
I  asked,  "  and  flee  temptation." 

"  Because,"  he  retorted  instantly,  "  because 
there  is  danger  here,  real  physical  danger  for  myself 
and  all  who  hold  the  King's  cause  dear." 

"  I,  too,  am  devoted  to  his  Majesty,"  I  said  quietly. 
"  Therefore  you  see  that  the  policy  of  flight  is 
impracticable  in  my  case  also." 

Father  Bemhard  abruptly  ceased  his  perambu- 
lations, and  fixed  his  piercing  glance  upon  me. 

"  The  King  was  good  enough  to  favour  me  with 
his  views  of  your  character,"  he  said,  "  I  am  in- 
clined to  think  they  were  correct.  Aur avoir.  1 
am  dining  at  the  royal  table  to-night.  We  shall 
meet  later." 


CHAPTER   XIV 

IF  you  are  touched  in  the  lungs  or  shattered  in 
the  nerves,  go  to  Weissheim.  If  you  are  over- 
worked, under-fed,  or  bhghted  in  love ;  if  you  are 
run  down  in  mind,  body  or  estate,  go  to  Weissheim. 
If,  on  the  other  hand,  you  are  sound  in  wind  and 
limb,  in  purse  and  mind,  in  body  and  soul,  assuredly 
and  by  all  means  go  to  Weissheim.  The  air,  the 
sky,  the  sun,  are  medicine  for  the  sick,  champagne 
for  the  healthy,  with  this  advantage,  that  the  more 
you  take  of  them  the  better  are  the  after-effects. 
I  don't  think  I  have  ever  had  a  better  time  in  my 
life  than  those  first  few  weeks  on  that  exalted 
plateau.  The  sun  shone  with  unvarying  gracious- 
ness,  the  thermometer  remained  consistently  below 
zero,  and  the  air  was  as  ever,  still,  exhilarating, 
pine-laden,  divine ! 

Into  the  sports  and  pastimes  of  the  place  I  threw 
myself  with  the  enthusiasm  of  an  able-bodied  novice, 
determined  at  all  costs  to  rival  and  excel  the  regular 
habitues  of  the  place.  I  could  have  had  no  better 
instructors.  At  skating  General  Meyer,  the  finest 
performer  in  Grimland,  initiated  me,  on  the  flooded 
rinks  of  the  Pariserhof  into  the  subtle  points 
which  differentiate  the  Weissheim  style  from  any 
other  in  the  world.    In  bob-sleighing  the  Prinzessin 


FROST   AND    FRIENDSHIP       177 

Mathilde  taught  me  how  to  steer  round  the  sharp 
turns  of  the  Riefinsdorf  road  without  forcing 
the  brakesman  to  spoil  the  time  of  the  run.  It  was 
fine  sport  that  bob-sleighing,  whether  you  steered 
from  the  front  or  whether  you  manipulated  the 
brake  from  behind,  or  even  if  you  were  only  a 
passenger  in  the  middle,  as  I  was  at  first  and  little 
Stephan  always.  The  slow  easy  start,  the  gradually 
augmenting  speed,  and  then  the  smooth  frictionless 
rush  till  the  "  bob  "  seemed  to  take  the  bit  between 
its  teeth  and  tore  down  the  straight  and  skidded 
round  the  curves  like  a  wild  animal  that  had  not 
had  any  exercise  for  a  week. 

It  was  so  sociable,  too,  sitting  one  behind  another, 
that  after  a  few  journeys  one  never  bothered  about 
the  precipice  on  one  side  of  the  roadway  or  the  pine 
trees  that  grew  so  perilously  close  down  on  the 
other  ;  and  the  occasional  spills  which  sent  us  all 
sprawling  anyhow  into  the  snow,  were  the  best  fun 
of  all. 

At  curling  I  could  have  had  no  better  instructor 
than  his  Majesty  the  King.  He  was  as  keen  on 
the  game  as  any  Scotsman,  and  besides  being  a  very 
skilful  performer  was  such  an  excellent  strategist 
that  he  was  invariably  voted  "  skipper "  of  his 
side  at  this  the  most  democratic  game  in  the  world. 
I  can  see  him  now  standing  broom  in  hand  directing 
his  men  from  the  "  house." 

"  Now  Number  three,"  he  would  call  out,  "  I 
want  you  to  draw  to  the  tee,  tee  strength  and  no 
more — and  I  don't  mind  if  you  chip  the  guard 
away.     Play  on   my  besom   in-handle.     Well  laid 

M 


178      FROST   AND    FRIENDSHIP 

man ! "  Then  as  the  granite  bowl  sUthered  along 
the  ice,  spinning  on  its  own  axis  towards  the  desired 
spot,  his  face  would  be  a  picture  of  concentrated 
and  watchful  anxiety. 

"  Let  it  curl,  let  it  curl,"  he  would  cry  to  the 
other  members  of  his  side  who  followed  it  down 
its  course  ready  at  a  word  to  sweep  their  willing 
hearts  out  if  the  shot  seemed  weak. 

"  Now  sweep — sweep  boys,  all  you  know.  Oh 
man,  you've  done  it — it's  a  daisy.  Come  and  look 
at  it.    Sehi  gut  gespielt !  " 

The  last  expression  never  failed  to  provoke  a 
laugh  from  his  opponents  and  a  thrill  of  satisfaction 
to  the  happy  recipient  of  the  compliment. 

My  afternoons  I  divided  evenly  between  hockey 
on  the  ice,  "  bandy  "  as  they  call  it,  and  toboggan- 
ing. The  former  I  regard  as  the  finest  game  in  the 
world,  the  latter  as  the  finest  sport,  and  though 
the  game  is  better  exercise,  a  more  sociable  and 
consistent  pastime,  it  provides  no  sensations  like 
those  of  the  toboggan  run.  In  this  Miss  Anchester 
was  my  instructor.  She  made  me  start  on  the 
Children's  run,  and  laughed  unmercifully  when  I 
went  over  the  first  bank  and  took  a  header  into  the 
deep  soft  snow. 

"  Never  mind,"  I  said,  as  I  picked  myself  out ; 
"  I'll  beat  your  record  time  on  the  Kastel  run  some 
day." 

"  And  yet  you  say  you're  not  conceited,"  she 
retorted  laughing. 

Piqued  by  her  raillery,  I  devoted  my  whole  energy 
to  mastering  the  difl&cult  art  of  steering  my  erratic 


FROST   AND    FRIENDSHIP       179 

and  treacherous  craft  till  I  could  negotiate  the 
Children's  run  as  well  as  little  Stephan  or  the  Duke 
of  Weissheim. 

I  next  turned  my  attention  to  the  Thai  run,  which 
instead  of  being  snow  like  the  Children's  run  had 
been  iced,  and  consequently  was  much  faster.  For 
this  I  purchased  rakes  for  my  boots,  and  pads  for 
my  knees  and  elbows.  My  first  efforts  were  not 
conspicuously  successful.  The  pace  of  the  thing 
beat  me  altogether  and  I  went  first  into  one  bank 
and  then  into  the  other,  and  in  spite  of  the  fact 
that  I  dug  my  rakes  viciously  into  the  track,  my 
toboggan  seemed  deliberately  to  run  away  with 
me.  Up  the  banked-up  curves  it  rushed  skidding 
down  again  with  an  uncomfortable  sideways  motion, 
banging  me  violently  into  the  counter  bank  till,  in 
spite  of  my  pads,  I  was  aching  in  knees  and  elbows, 
and  felt  exactly  as  if  some  one  was  playing  battledore 
with  me  for  the  shuttlecock.  Finally,  in  despair 
I  gave  up  digging  my  rake  into  the  ice  and  let  the 
thing  rip  along  in  its  own  wicked  way,  just  tapping 
the  ice  with  one  foot  when  I  came  to  a  corner,  and 
throwing  my  weight  to  one  side.  Then,  strange 
to  say,  I  got  along  quite  comfortably,  and  kept  more 
or  less  to  the  centre  of  the  track  without  those 
elbow-shattering  cannonadings  with  the  adamantine 
ice-banks. 

On  the  other  hand  the  pace  began  to  develop 
alarmingly,  and  I  felt  more  apprehensive  than  I 
should  have  cared  to  admit.  The  wind  whistled 
in  my  ears,  the  sides  of  the  track  raced  past  me, 
and  I  realised  that  a  momentary  loss  of  nerve,  an 


i8o       FROST    AND    FRIENDSHIP 

inconsiderable  error  of  steering,  and  something 
sudden  and  disastrous  would  befall  me.  My  relief 
at  getting  to  the  bottom  was  great,  though  the 
sudden  dash  from  the  smooth  ice  track  into  the 
deep  snow  at  the  termination  of  the  run  was  dis- 
concerting in  its  abruptness. 

I  found  Miss  Anchester,  who  had  made  a  descent 
just  before  me,  waiting  at  the  lower  end  of  the 
course. 

"You  should  rake  a  bit  at  the  end,"  she  said, 
"  otherwise  you  get  carried  out  into  the  deep  snow 
and  have  a  job  to  wade  back." 

"  Your  remarks  as  always  are  full  of  point," 
I  replied,  struggling  with  difficulty  back  to  the 
firm  path  which  bordered  the  toboggan  run. 

"  Still,  "  continued  the  Governess  patronisingly. 
"  You  did  not  do  a  bad  course.  We  shall  get  you 
on  to  the  Kastel  run  soon." 

"  Is  that  faster  than  this  ?  " 

"  About  twice  as  fast  and  much  longer.  Why  ? 
Is  your  nerve  giving"^way  ?  " 

"  Not  a  bit,"  I  answered.  *'  The  Thai  run  is  good 
in  its  way,  but  a  trifle  slow." 

Miss   Anchester   smiled. 

"  Now  tell  me,"  she  said,  "  are  you  ready  to 
make  a  second  descent  ?  " 

My  aching  elbows  pleaded  hard  for  a  respite,  and 
my  spirit  rebelled  at  the  thought  of  those  disquiet- 
ingly  sudden  bends.  All  the  same  I  hardened  my 
heart. 

"  Absolutely,"  I  rephed.  "  Allow  me  to  drag 
your  toboggan  up  for  you." 


FROST   AND    FRIENDSHIP       i8i 

"  Thanks,  I  can  manage  my  own.  I  will  watch 
you  from  half-way  this  time." 

I  am  not  more  deficient  in  nerve  than  most  men, 
but  I  must  plead  guilty  to  a  slight  feeling  of  appre- 
hension as  I  waited  my  turn  for  my  second  journey 
down  the  Thai  run. 

I  noted  how  an  English  lady  started,  sitting  on 
her  schlitli  with  both  feet  planted  flatly  and  firmly 
on  the  track  so  that  her  speed  should  never  develop 
beyond  the  most^-modest  limits — and  I  longed  for 
moral  courage  to^do  the  same.  Then  as  she  dis- 
appeared sedately  round  the  bend,  a  sunburned 
peasant-boy  blew  a  shrill  whistle  from  a  point  of 
vantage,  and  the  next  in  order,  a  blue-chinned  Grim- 
lander,  made  ready  for  his  journey.  Pipe  in  mouth, 
unpadded  at  the  elbows,  his  boots  devoid  of  rakes, 
he  shoved  off!  lazily  with  his  big  hands,  and 
sped  with  rapidly  increasing  speed  beyond  our 
view. 

Next  came  an  Englishman  arrayed  like  myself, 
and  when  the  whistle  sounded  he  ran  a  few  yards 
with  his  machine,  and  then  flung  himself  violently 
upon  it  so  as  to  develop  his  top  speed  with  the  least 
possible  delay. 

I  awaited  the  blowing  of  the  next  whistle  with  an 
excitement  which  I  tried  to  persuade  myself  was 
pleasurable.  There  were  onlookers  at  the  start, 
and  with  a  laudable  attempt  at  insouciance,  I 
hurled  myself  gaily  on  to  the  toboggan  in  the  admired 
manner  of  my  immediate  predecessor.  Mindful  of 
the  comparative  success  of  the  latter  half  of  my 
previous  journey,  I  forebore  to  use  my  rakes  more 


i82      FROST    AND    FRIENDSHIP 

than  was  absolutely  necessary.  The  result  was  a 
gratifying  absence  of  bumps,  and  an  increase  of 
speed  which  absolutely  terrified  me.  I  went  round 
the  first  bend  like  a  flash  of  lightning.  Before  I 
had  time  even  to  think  of  steering  I  was  on  the 
second,  and  I  took  it  perilously  high.  In  the  little 
bit  of  straight  that  followed  I  had  a  brief  vision  of 
the  Grovemess'  upright  form  poised  on  the  summit 
of  the  inside  bank  at  my  next  corner. 

In  an  insane  desire  to  demonstrate  my  skill  and 
confidence  I  lifted  my  feet  well  above  the  ice  track, 
scorning  my  rakes,  and  foolishly  ostentatious  of  my 
scorn.  Onward  I  rushed,  a  strong  mixture  of  fear 
and  exaltation  in  my  heart,  and  as  I  felt  myself 
speeding  beneath  the  cool  grey  eyes  of  my  critical 
coach  I  strove  to  banish  all  tenseness  from  my 
features,  and  assume  a  look  of  mildly  pleasurable 
unconcern.  What  followed  I  cannot  exactly  de- 
scribe, as  far  as  my  sensations  were  concerned, 
though  my  fate  was  a  natural  and  not  uncommon  one. 
Dashing  at  the  next  bank  without  any  preliminary 
raking,  and  trusting  to  the  steep  curved  wall  of  ice 
to  bring  my  toboggan  round,  I  shot  high  up  the 
gleaming  green  rampart  and  for  a  moment — and  a 
moment  only — my  heart  beat  with  fiercer,  wilder 
exaltation  than  before.  Then  my  right  runner 
rose  a  fraction  of  an  inch  above  the  top  of  the  bank, 
and  in  an  instant  I  was  hurtling  through  space  with 
the  velocity  of  a  stone  from  a  sling.  The  seconds 
of  my  falling  were  the  longest  of  my  life.  Still 
hugging  my  toboggan  closely,  I  bumped  into  the 
compact  snow  which  backed  the  ice  wall,  faUing, 


"  On  either  side  of  me  knelt  a  beautiful  young  womanr  ' 
Frost  and  Friendship]  IPa^e  1SS 


FROST   AND    FRIENDSHIP       183 

rebounding,  falling — ^should  I  never  stop  ?  The 
pain  and  shock  of  the  impact  were  lost  in  the  fear 
of  what  was  coming,  in  the  desperate  wonder  when 
my  horrible  travelling  would  come  to  its  nerve- 
shattering  conclusion. 

The  actual  memory  of  my  first  halt  is  lost  to  me, 
for,  as  I  discovered  subsequently,  I  ran  my  head 
against  some  hard  snow  banked  up  round  the  base 
of  one  of  the  telegraphic  poles  which  follow  the 
course  of  the  Thai  run.  When  I  regained  con- 
sciousness I  was  imder  the  firm  impression  that  I 
was  dreaming.  Not  only  were  my  faculties  sub- 
acute, and  my  being  permeated  by  a  sensation  of 
delicious  comfort  and  repose,  but  my  eyes  rested 
on  a  vision  such  as  I  had  never  expected  to  behold 
in  my  waking  moments.  On  either  side  of  me  knelt 
a  beautiful  young  woman,  and,  to  my  obfuscated 
senses,  their  faces  wore  an  expression  of  the  deepest 
S3anpathy  and  concern.  I  lay  motionless  and 
speechless  as  I  was,  dreading  by  thought  or  move- 
ment to  break  the  thread  of  slumber  and  lose  the 
rapturous  vision  in  the  unprosaic  realities  of  awaken- 
ing. Then,  as  my  mind  began  to  work  more  nor- 
mally, it  occurred  to  me  that  the  dream  was  a 
singularly  vivid  one,  that  the  faces  bending  so 
tenderly  over  me  were  far  more  definite  than  the 
dream  faces  which  haunt  the  slumbers  of  a  youthful 
bachelor,  and  suddenly,  and  with  something  of  a 
shock,  the  memory  of  what  had  happened  came 
back  to  me.  I  had  had  a  spill  toboganning,  and 
was  lying  couched  in  the  soft  snow.  On  one  side 
of  me  was  the  royal  Governess  and  on   the   other 


^■- 


i84      FROST   AND    FRIENDSHIP 

the  Princess  Mathilde,  and  womanlike  they  were 
rather  alarmed  at  the  severity  of  my  tumble. 

I  looked  up  into  the  face  of  the  young  Princess. 
Her  dark  eyes  were  troubled  with  a  look  of  unmis- 
takeable  concern,  and  her  pretty  mobile  features 
wore  such  a  sweet  air  of  sympathy  that  in  spite  of 
a  slight  feeling  of  amusement  I  was  quite  touched. 

"  I'm  all  right,"  I  said,  smihng. 

"  You've  had  a  nasty  fall,"  she  said  quietly, 
"  and  you  must  keep  perfectly  still.  Do  you  think 
a  little  brandy  would  do  him  good,  Miss  Anchester  ? ' 

I  turned  to  the  Governess. 

Now  that  I  had  regained  the  full  possession  of 
my  senses,  I  saw  that  Miss  Anchester's  expression 
of  tenr'er  solicitude  had  merely  been  the  figment  of 
my  shaken  brain.  Her  healthy  young  face  was 
cool  and  serious  enough,  but  the  calm  eyes  were 
as  practical  and  imemotional  as  ever. 

'*  No,"  she  said  decisively.  "  Brandy  is  the 
worst  thing  possible  for  a  knock  on  the  head.  Do 
you  think  you  can  manage  to  walk,  Mr.  Saunders  ?  " 

"  I'm  sure  I  can,"  I  answered. 

**  No,  no,  don't  try,"  put  in  the  Princess  hastily. 
"  We'll  send  a  sleigh  for  you  and  bring  you  home 
on   it." 

•'  If  you'll  allow  me  to  try,"  I  said,  "  I  think 
you'll  find  I'm  more  frightened  than  hurt." 

Suiting  the  action  to  the  word  I  rose  to  my  knees. 
Then,  with  a  further  effort,  I  struggled  to  my  feet. 
As  I  did  so  the  white  world  raced  round  me,  and 
the  sky  above  seemed  waving  and  sagging  like  an 
intensely  blue  awning.    Then  as  things  grew  grad- 


FROST   AND    FRIENDSHIP       185 

ually  still  and  clear  again,  I  discovered  that  my 
companions  were  supporting  me  on  either  side. 

"  Thanks,"  I  said,  "  I'm  sorry  to  be  such  a  nui- 
sance.    I  suppose  I  went  over  the  bank." 

"  You  ought  to  have  raked,"  said  Miss  Anchester 
severely,  "  there  aren't  half  a  dozen  men  who  can 
go  down  the  Thai  run  without  raking." 

"  I'm  afraid  I'm  not  one  of  them,"  I  said  gloomily, 
"  but  I  may  be  later.  Has  any  one  ever  been 
down  the  Kastel  run  without  raking  ?  '* 

Miss  Anchester  looked  at  me  as  if  my  senses 
must  still  be  errant  to  have  suggested  such  a 
thing. 

"  No,"  she  said  curtly  ;  "  and  please  don't  try. 
If  you  go  over  David,  you  won't  get  off  with  a 
severe  shaking  I  can  tell  you." 

"  Or  find  two  ministering  angels  at  the  bottom 
either,"  I  added.  "  By  the  way.  Princess,  where 
do  you  come  from  ?  " 

"  I  was  ski-ing,"  she  said,  slightly  raising  one 
foot  to  demonstrate  her  foot-gear.  "  I  saw  some 
one  shoot  over  the  bank  and  I  hastened  up  to  see 
if  I  could  be  of  any  assistance.  I  had  no  idea  it  was 
you.     I  do  hope  you're  not  hurt." 

"  I'm  quite  right  again  now,  thanks,"  I  said  ; 
"  in  fact  I  think  I'll  have  another  go  at  the  Thai 
run  just  to  show  there's  no  ill-feeling." 

"  You  will  do  nothing  of  the  sort,"  said  Miss 
Anchester  peremptorily.  "  One  wants  all  one's 
wits  toboganning,  and  that  yours  are  somewhat 
shaken  is  proved  by  your  suggestion." 

Her  authoritative  manner  piqued  me,  all  the  more 


i86      FROST   AND    FRIENDSHIP 

because  it  covered  a  certain  measure  of  common 
sense.  ^ 

"  Please  don't  go  down  again  to-day,  Mr.  Saun- 
ders," pleaded  the  Princess.  "  You'll  be  much 
steadier  to-morrow." 

"  I  yield  to  your  combined  eloquence,"  I  said, 
"  though  personally  I  disapprove  of  stopping  after 
a  fall.     I  don't  hke  leaving  off  when  I'm  beaten." 

"  There  are  plenty  of  people  hke  that  in  the 
world,"  said  Miss  Anchester.  "  They  usually  come 
to  a  bad  end." 

"  We  all  come  to  a  bad  end  sooner  or  later,"  I 
retorted.  "  The  great  thing  is  to  fight  strenuously 
till  Fate  conquers  us,  as  it  ultimately  must,  by 
brute  force." 

"  What  a  hopelessly  unspiritual  outlook  !  " 

"  I  beg  your  pardon,"  I  said,  "  but  when  one  has 
just  charged  a  telegraph  pole  one's  pessimism  is 
forced  to  the  surface.  A  cup  of  hot  chocolate  and 
a  Weissheim  bun  will  render  me  a  thoughtless, 
foohsh  optimist  again." 

"  I  hope  you  won't  knock  yourself  up  before 
our  ball,"  said  the  Princess. 

"  When  is  that  ?  " 

"  On  the  sixth  of  February.  It  is  an  annual  affair 
at  the  Marienkastel  and  rather  fun.*' 

Rather  fun  !  What  a  splendid  and  wonderful 
temperament  one  must  possess  to  regard  a  State 
ball  as  fun ! 

"  I  will  try  and  keep  myself  sound  for  it,"  I  said. 
"Dancing  seems  a  popular  amusement  at  Weissheim." 

At  the  Princess's  suggestion  we  walked  together 


FROST   AND    FRIENDSHIP       187 

to  an  old-fashioned  pastrycook's  on  the  outskirts  of 
Weissheim  kept  by  a  certain  Frau  Mengler. 

"  We  shall  see,"  I  said,  as  we  entered  the  low 
doorway,  "whether  hot  chocolate  proves  as  success- 
ful in  cheering  the  moral  outlook  as  I  hope." 

"  I  don't  think  there's  much  wrong  with  your 
moral  outlook,"  said  the  Princess. 

"  Then  I'm  afraid  you're  not  a  judge  of  moral 
outlooks,"  said  Miss  Anchester,  smiling. 

"  Perhaps  I'm  not,"  admitted  the  Princess, 
"  but  I'm  a  very  good  judge  of  hot  chocolate." 

"  Frau  Mengler,"  I  said,  "  bring  three  cups  of 
your  best  hot  chocolate  and  an  improved  moral 
outlook." 

"  Where  shall  we  sit  ?  "  asked  the  Princess  after 
indulging  in  a  vivifying  peal  of  her  usual  uncontrolled 
laughter. 

"  If  the  Princess  Mathilde  is  going  to  have  one  of 
her  laughing  fits,"  said  Miss  Anchester,  "  I  think 
we  had  better  go  into  the  inner  room." 

Crossing  the  shop  I  opened  the  door  which  led 
into  the  second  apartment.  Seeing  it  already  oc- 
cupied I  was  about  to  close  the  door  again  when 
my  eyes  rested  with  surprised  recognition  on  the 
couple  in  possession.  Of  these  one  was  Herr 
Schneider,  the  detective,  and  the  other,  a  huge 
plate  of  eclairs  and  cream  buns  before  her,  the 
Fraulein  Von  Helder.  The  tete-a-tete  was  a  suffi- 
ciently remarkable  phenomenon  in  itself,  but  what 
puzzled  and  amused  me  so  much  that  I  hesitated  a 
moment  before  closing  the  door,  was  the  undisguised 
rapture  expressed  on  the  animal  features  of  the 


i88      FROST   AND    FRIENDSHIP 

Queen's  Maid  of  Honour.  I  shut  the  door  quietly, 
noticing  that  Herr  Schneider  was  displaying  his 
best  manners,  which  were  horrible,  and  doubtless, 
I  reflected,  pursuing  his  professional  researches  by 
an  unprincipled  but  successful  simulation  of  the 
tender  passion. 

"  What  is  the  joke  ?  "  asked  the  Princess,  noticing 
my  smile. 

"  The  room  is  engaged,"  I  said,  "  and  so  I  fancy 
are  the  couple  within." 

"  Engaged  ? "  queried  my  two  lady  friends 
simultaneously. 

"  I  may  be  premature,"  I  admitted. 

"  Who  are  they  ?  "  demanded  the  Governess. 

"  My  fellow-guest,  Herr  Schneider,"  I  rephed, 
"  and  the  celebrated  court  beauty,  Fraulein  von 
Helder." 

"  But "  Miss  Anchester's  amusement  was  as 

great  if  not  quite  so  uncontrolled  as  the  Princess's. 
"  What  grounds  have  you  for  your  remarkable 
assertion  ?  " 

"  In  the  first  place,"  I  rephed,  "  I  have  the 
facial  expression  of  the  happy  pair,  which  was  sub- 
Umely  ludicrous.  Secondly,  there  is  the  presumed 
fact  that  Herr  Schneider  is  pa3mig  for  the  Fraulein 's 
tea,  no  slight  matter  even  in  an  inexpensive  tea- 
shop." 

"  Your  arguments  are  eloquent  but  unconvincing," 
said  Miss  Anchester.  "  Herr  Schneider  is  not  the 
man  to  fall  hghtly  in  love,  and  the  Fraulein  von 
Helder  is  not  the  sort  of  person  who  would  appeal 
to  his  somewhat  world-worn  sentimentaUty." 


FROST   AND    FRIENDSHIP      189 

"  You  are  a  poor  judge  of  character,  Miss 
Anchester,"  I  said.  "  You  think  me  conceited 
because  I  feel  confident  of  breaking  your  record 
time  on  the  Kastel  run,  and  now  you  are  caUing 
the  ingenuous  Herr  Schneider  world-worn,  and 
denying  him  the  capacity  for  spontaneous  emotion. 
Wait  till  you  see  the  infatuated  pair  come 
out." 

"  If  the  Fraulein's  appetite  is  up  to  the  mark," 
said  the  Princess,  "  we  may  have  to  wait  a  long 
time." 

"  I  am  prepared  to  wait  a  long  time,"  I  replied. 
"  Frau  Mengler's  chocolate  surpasses  my  fondest 
expectations.  What  I  like  about  Weissheim  is, 
that  one  meal  never  influences  the  next.  When  I 
am  in  London  I  never  take  tea  for  fear  of  spoiling 
my  dinner.  Here  I  can  make  a  pig  of  myself  four 
times  a  day,  without  fear  of  reproach." 

"  You  had  better  make  Weissheim  your  permanent 
abode,"  said  Miss  Anchester.  "  It  is  a  great  thing 
to  realise  one's  ideals." 

"  I  hope  you'U  come  here  in  the  summer,"  said 
the  Princess.  "  It's  not  quite  so  lovely  as  it  is  now, 
but  the  mountain  sides  blaze  with  wild  flowers  in 
June,  and  there  is  any  amount  of  lawn  tennis  on 
the  Pariserhof  courts." 

"  It  sounds  very  fascinating,"  I  said.  "  Perfect 
digestion,  perfect  scenery,  excellent  sport.  What 
more  can  a  man  demand  of  life  ?  " 

"  You  had  better  ask  your  love-sick  friend  Herr 
Schneider,"  said  Miss  Anchester.  "  His  wants 
seem  a  shade  less  material  than  yours." 


IQO      FROST    AND    FRIENDSHIP 

"  HeiT  Schneider  is  a  beast,"  I  blurted  out  with- 
out thinking. 

I  expected  to  be  reproved  for  my  bluntness,  but 
the  result  was  quite  otherwise. 

"  I'm  so  glad  you  think  so,"  said  the  Princess. 
"  I  think  he  is  a  beast  too." 

I  turned  to  Miss  Anchester. 

"  I  think  he  is  the  most  horrible  specimen  of 
humanity  I  have  ever  had  the  misfortune  to  come 
across,"  she  said  deliberately.  "  And,  for  goodness 
sake,  Mr.  Saunders,"  she  said,  "  take  care  you  don't 
get  like  him." 

•  "  You  think  there  is  a  danger  of  that  ?  "  I  de- 
manded, suspending  my  cup  of  chocolate  in  mid 
air. 

She  looked  me  straight  in  the  eyes  smiling  at  my 
seriousness. 

"  I  do,"  she  replied  simply. 

"  Confound  it !  "  I  ejaculated.  "  I  have  had  the 
very  same  fear  myself." 

Suddenly  the  door  of  the  inner  room  opened,  and 
the  subject  of  our  conversation  came  out.  He  was 
dressed  in  a  brown  knickerbocker  suit  and  a  green 
Homburg  hat  with  a  feather  in  it.  His  flat  face 
was  wreathed  in  smiles,  and  his  quick  restless  eyes 
recognised  us  in  a  second.  The  Fraulein  followed, 
and  her  plain  heavy  features  were  illuminated 
with  the  glow  of  happiness,  a  quaint  contradiction 
of  half-beautified  ugUness,  as  when  the  sun  shines 
on  a  squalid  building.  Guessing  the  ill-founded 
nature  of  her  aspirations  I  pitied  her,  and  then  for 
some  reason  or  other  I  felt  envious.     A  passion 


FROST   AND    FRIENDSHIP      191 

that  could  lend  even  a  reflection  of  beauty  to  the 
Fraulein's  homely  countenance  must  be  itself  a 
beautiful  and  wonderful  thing.  Assuredly  it  was 
better  to  dream  one's  happiness  than  to  remain 
awake  and  miss  it  altogether. 


CHAPTER   XV 

THIS  is  not  a  love  story,  nor  I  one  who  holds 
that  love  should  be  written  about  in  detail 
like  a  disease,  dissected  like  a  pauper's  corpse,  or 
analysed  like  a  malignant  growth.  Still  less  should 
it  be  put  in  a  show-case  for  the  benefit  of  the  vulgarly 
curious,  labelled  and  classified  according  as  it  is 
spiritual  or  animal,  passionately  overbearing  or 
enduringly  circumspect. 

Nevertheless,  we  may  say  this  of  love,  truly  and 
without  offence,  that  if  in  its  perfection  it  is  a  won- 
derful and  sacred  thing,  it  is  also  in  its  immature 
and  unperfected  state  a  fair  subject  for  discussion, 
and,  if  you  will,  amused  enquiry. 

That  is  why  I  propose  to  deal,  lightly  and  briefly, 
with  the  incipient  flame  which  first  began  to  smoul- 
der in  my  own  uninflammable  bosom.  My  first 
sentiments  on  discovering  the  outbreak  were  anger 
and  dismay.  I  was  not  in  my  first  youth,  and  man- 
like imagined  that  I  had  fallen  in  and  out  of  love  at 
least  half  a  dozen  times  in  my  career.  And  yet,  I 
regretfully  admitted,  I  could  no  more  truly  compare 
these  emotional  incidents  of  a  past  date  with  my 
present  feelings  than  I  could  liken  Primrose  Hill  to 
the  titanic  Klauigberg. 

It  was  the  morning  after  my  spill  on  the  Thai  run 


FROST   AND    FRIENDSHIP       193 

that  the  true  condition  of  affairs  was  borne  in  on 
my  rebelUous  mind. 

In  my  waking  moments,  with  eyes  half  closed  and 
senses  gradually  freeing  themselves  from  the  soft 
chains  of  slumber,  I  saw  again  the  pitying  trembling 
glance  of  the  royal  Governess  as  she  bent  over  my 
shaken  prostrate  body  in  the  deep  snow  at  the  side 
of  the  Thai  run. 

The  vision  was  sweet,  as  sweet  as  it  was  doubtless 
devoid  of  all  foundation,  and  yet  it  roused  in  my 
heart  a  mighty  yearning  for  its  truth. 

What  a  majestic  thing  it  would  be  if  I  could 
really  draw  to  a  woman's  eyes  that  pictured  look 
of  tenderness,  of  pitying  alarm  !  I  had  imagined 
such  a  thing,  and  the  imagination  was  incalculably 
fair,  and  yet  I  knew  that  the  one  being  whom  I 
could  wish  to  gaze  upon  me  thus,  was  as  unemotional 
as  the  virgin  precipices  of  the  Eisenzahn,  as  cold 
as  the  never-melting  snows  of  the  Traualtar. 

I  got  out  of  bed  and  called  myself  a  fool,  audibly. 
I  had  not  come  to  Weissheim  to  fall  in  love,  but 
rather  to  avoid  the  amorous  pitfalls  digged  for  me 
by  scheming  mothers,  particularly  by  my  own 
designing  parent. 

And  now  I  had  fallen  in  love  with  a  woman  who 
neither  cared  for  me,  nor  was  capable  of  caring  for 
anybody  ;  a  beautiful,  self-possessed  young  creature, 
with  a  mind  of  crystal  and  a  heart  of  ice.  Of 
course  it  was  this  very  iciness  which  attracted  me — 
I  was  not  quite  such  a  fool  as  to  ignore  that.  To 
one  who  was  accustomed  to  being  indiscriminately 
gushed  upon,  there  was  a  distinct  fascination  in  the 

N 


194      FROST   AND   FRIENDSHIP 

contemptuous  indifference,  the  cool  criticality  with 
which  Miss  Anchester  habitually  treated  me.  And 
yet  she  never  avoided  me,  never,  of  late  at  any 
rate,  made  herself  gratuitously  disagreeable,  and 
her  very  snubbings  had  a  half  humorous  insincerity 
about  them  which  made  them  almost  pleasant  to 
receive.  Had  she  sought  my  society  or  noticeably 
avoided  it  I  might  have  hoped ;  but  she  did  neither. 
Circumstances  threw  us  much  together  and  we  were 
friends,  almost  as  men  are  friends,  but  the  very 
frankness  of  our  intercourse  was  fatal  to  an  atmo- 
sphere of  sentimentality.  Angrily  I  threw  off  my 
pyjamas  and  stepped  into  my  icy  sitzbad.  Angrily 
I  soused  and  splashed  myself,  and  viciously  I  rubbed 
myself  to  a  condition  of  dryness  and  glowing  circula- 
tion. And  then,  more  angrily  still,  I  lathered  my 
face  with  shaving  foam  till  my  features  were  almost 
as  concealed  as  they  had  been  that  memorable 
afternoon  by  the  borrowed  headgear  of  Lame 
Peter. 

In  love  !  In  love  with  a  governess  whose  interests 
were  divided  between  her  royal  charges  and  the 
Kastel  run,  and  who  no  more  cared  for  me  than 
she  did  for  the  leather  strap  of  her  toboganning 
pads.  It  was  too  humiliating.  It  was  so  idiotic 
too  when  I  came  to  think  of  it.  In  a  moment  of  sub- 
consciousness, I  had  pictured  an  expression  on  her 
face  which  nature  was  incapable  of  putting  there  ; 
and  this  rotten  tap-root  of  my  imagination  was 
feeding  a  monstrous  growth  which  threatened  to 
usurp  my  thoughts  which  should  have  been  occu- 
pied with  consideration  for  the  King's  safety,  and 


FROST   AND    FRIENDSHIP      195 

to  sap  my  energies  which  should  have  been  devoted 
to  bandy,  tobogganing,  and  the  curiing  rink. 

In  my  annoyance  I  phed  my  razor  with  such  ill- 
considered  violence  that  I  gashed  myself  heavily 
under  the  right  ear. 

"  Bah  !  "  I  cried,  surveying  the  reflexion  of  the 
encrimsoned  foam  in  the  looking-glass.  "  Fool  is 
too  good  a  word  for  you."  And  with  a  considerable 
mental  effort  to  fix  my  attention  on  the  matter  in 
hand,  I  resolved  to  stifle,  or  at  any  rate  conceal,  a 
passion  that  was  hopeless,  unreasoning  and  con- 
temptible. 

The  history  of  my  next  few  days  is  a  history  of 
mental  and  physical  degeneration.  I  was  distrait. 
On  the  curling  rink  I  was  a  by-word  and  a  shame. 
Once  at  a  critical  moment  of  the  game  when  my 
skipper  bade  me  sweep,  my  thoughts  were  so  far 
afield  that  my  broom  remained  idle  and  motionless 
in  my  hand.  Yells,  Homeric  and  oft-repeated,  failed 
to  reach  my  inattentive  brain,  and  the  stone,  which 
might  have  been  a  good  one,  was  doomed  to  the 
fate  of  such  as  fail  to  pass  the  hog-score.  Once, 
on  the  other  hand,  I  started  sweeping  energetically 
according  to  orders  but  disregarding  the  "  up  besom," 
which  should  have  terminated  my  efforts,  polished 
the  ice  with  such  misapplied  vigour  that  a  promising 
shot  raced  fruitlessly  through  the  "  house."  Such 
things  sound  ludicrous,  as  perhaps  they  are  when 
viewed  in  the  legitimate  perspective  of  time  and 
distance,  but  on  the  actual  scene  of  the  occurrence 
my  behaviour  was  regarded  almost  in  the  light  of  an 
outrage.    At  bandy,  too,  my  play  was  marked  by 


196      FROST    AND    FRIENDSHIP 

such  a  whole-hearted  disregard  of  the  rules,  to  say 
nothing  of  the  conventions,  of  the  game,  that  I  was 
looked  upon  as  a  bad  opponent  and  a  worse  ally. 
At  tobogganing  alone,  at  this  period,  did  I  make 
conscious  progress,  and  there  the  fact  that  I  was 
under  Miss  Anchester's  eye  nerved  me  to  under- 
takings I  should  have  believed  myself  incapable  of. 
I  tried  the  Kastel  run,  and  greatly  to  my  surprise, 
really  enjoyed  it.  The  swift,  dangerous  rush  forced 
my  thoughts  to  concentrate  themselves  on  the 
matter  in  hand  as  nothing  else  could  have  done. 
The  penalty  for  absent-mindedness  would  have  been 
too  severe,  more  terrible  even  than  the  Germano- 
Scotch  recrimination  of  the  curling  rink  or  the  Anglo- 
Saxon  profanity  of  the  bandy  ground.  Wherefore 
at  tobogganing  I  made  unexampled  progress  and 
began  to  do  very  good  times,  though  never  of  course 
getting  within  measurable  distance  of  Miss  Anches- 
ter's celebrated  record  of  two  minutes  twenty-nine 
and  a  quarter  seconds.  At  this  most  fascinating 
of  all  sports  I  had  as  companion,  besides  my  fair 
coach,  Herr  Schneider,  the  detective,  and  Max  the 
reckless.  The  latter,  a  good  tobogganer  but  an 
erratic  one,  improved  but  slightly  on  acquaintance. 
Taciturn  rather  than  actually  sulky,  his  conversa- 
tional powers  were  scantily  employed,  and  this  in 
itself  was  perhaps  a  fortunate  circumstance,  for  his 
speech  contained  a  larger  proportion  of  really  bad 
language  than  I  cared  about.  I  disliked  the  type 
without  considering  him  a  particularly  bad  specimen 
thereof,  whilst  he  in  his  turn  began  to  develop  a 
sort  of  rough  respect  for  me  which  was  about  as 


FROST    AND    FRIENDSHIP       197 

near  affection  as  his  curious  nature  would  allow. 
As  for  Herr  Schneider,  if  ever  there  was  an  enthu- 
siastic tobogganer  it  was  he.  Every  hour  he  could 
spare  from  his  professional  duties  he  spent  on  the 
Kastel  run,and  though  he  cared  little  for  his  "  times  " 
or  the  competitive  side  of  the  sport,  I  don't  believe 
any  one  took  such  emotional  delights  as  he  did  in 
the  pleasures  of  sheer  speed.  Walking  up  again 
after  a  descent  he  would  talk  ceaselessly  the  whole 
way,  dragging  his  toboggan  with  one  hand,  and 
gesticulating  freely  with  the  other,  and  it  speaks 
volumes  for  his  intellectuality  that  he  never  for  one 
instant   degenerated  into   a  bore. 

A  frequent  spectator  was  the  Princess  Mathilda, 
who  tobogganned  assiduously  on  the  less  dangerous 
courses  but  who  was  forbidden,  to  her  intense  annoy- 
ance, to  venture  on  the  Kastel  run.  I  took  a  keen 
delight  in  her  society,  and  her  frank  nature  left  me 
no  doubt  that  the  pleausre  was  a  mutual  one. 
Many  a  time  she  and  I  and  Miss  Anchester  took  our 
five  o'clock  chocolate  together,  and  those  little 
meetings  in  Frau  Mengler's  back  parlour  are  not 
the  least  pleasant  of  my  many  happy  Weisheim 
memories.  Our  conversation  would  frequently  turn 
on  Herr  Schneider  and  his  marked  attentions  to 
the  Fraulein  von  Helder.  The  Princess  would  have 
it  that  his  sentiments  were  genuine,  while  Miss 
Anchester  insisted  that  he  was  merely  amusing 
himself.  Knowing  that  the  man's  real  motive 
was  solely  the  extraction  of  information  from  the 
Queen's  confidante,  and  desiring  at  the  same  time 
to  keep  my  knowledge  of  his  duties  a  profound 


igS      FROST   AND    FRIENDSHIP 

secret,  I  had  difficulty  in  pronouncing  an  opinion 
when  appealed  to  as  umpire.  I  got  out  of  the 
trouble  as  far  as  possible  by  first  siding  with  the 
Princess  and  then  with  the  Governess,  till  at  last 
they  united  forces  in  condemning  me  as  an  unut- 
terable humbug.  All  of  which  was  very  delightful ; 
and  though  Miss  Anchester  never  lost  an  opportu- 
nity of  snubbing  me,  she  did  it  so  daintily  and  with 
such  genuine  humour  that  I  often  laid  myself  open 
purposely  to  her  rebukes. 

"  Your  view  of  Herr  Schneider's  sentiments  is 
ridiculous,"  she  said  to  me  one  day  when  I  happened 
to  be  siding  with  the  Princess.  "  The  man  is 
incapable  of  a  disinterested  action." 

"  I  say  that  he  loved  her  at  first  sight,"  I  main- 
tained stoutly. 

"The  Fraulein  is  rich,"  was  the  contemptuous 
retort. 

"  Precisely.  He  loved  her  at  first  sight — of 
her  bankbook." 

And,  as  usual,  the  Princess's  musical  laughter 
brought  peace  and  good  humour  to  our  badinage. 

Any  doubts  I  might  have  had  on  the  subject 
of  the  detective's  sentiments  were  set  at  rest  by 
that  gentleman's  perfectly  frank  declaration  on 
the  subject. 

I  WcLS  walking  home  with  him  one  evening  after 
a  very  pleasant  afternoon  on  the  Kastel  run. 

"  Did  you  know  I  was  in  love,  Saunders  ?  "  he 
asked  abruptly  after  dilating  in  his  usual  excitable 
fashion  on  the  glories  of  tobogganing. 

"  I  knew  you  were  supposed  to  be,"  I  answered. 


FROST   AND    FRIENDSHIP       199 

"  but  I  took  the  liberty  of  doubting  tlie  genuineness 
of  your  passion." 

"  You  are  referring  to  the  Fraulein  von  Helder  ?  " 

*'  Yes,"  I  replied  ;    "  were  not  you  ?  " 

He  shook  his  head  and  snapped  his  fingers  vul- 
garly. "  No,"  he  said,  "  I  might  conceivably  love 
a  very  clever  plain  woman,  but  the  intelligence  of 
our  excellent  Fraulein  is  not  sufficiently  colossal  to 
counteract  the  exceeding  homeliness  of  her  feat- 
ures.' 

"  Then  who  is  the  favoured  one  ?  " 

"  The  Prinzessin  Mathilde  !  " 

I  whistled. 

"  You  are  ambitious,"  was  my  comment. 

He  shrugged  his  shoulders. 

"  I  am  ambitious,  but  I  am  not  unpractical. 
Grimland  is  a  country  of  ups  and  downs.  A  Prin- 
cess of  one  day  may  be  a  fugitive  of  the  next." 

"  Also,"  I  said,  "  a  detective  of  to-day  may 
be  the  honoured  and  ennobled  friend  of  royalty, 
to-morrow." 

"  Exactly ;  you  put  it  admirably.  Now  tell  me, 
as  a  man  of  discernment,  what  do  you  think  of 
the  Princess  ?  " 

"  A  favourable  example  of  the  sweetest  thing 
in  nature — a  budding  woman." 

"  Bravo !  "  cried  my  companion.  "  Love  is 
making  you  a  poet." 

"  What  do  you  mean  ?  "  ^ 

He  laughed. 

'*  You  too  are  in  love,  my  friend.  Do  not  deny 
it,  for  remember,  it  is  my  trade  to  read  men's  hearts. 


200      FROST   AND   FRIENDSHIP 

You  love  the  Governess  and,  unlike  mine,  yours  is 
an  unambitious  passion,  and  you  will  succeed 
without  difficulty  ?  " 

"  You  think  so  ?  "     I  demanded  eagerly. 

"  I  am  sure  of  it,"  he  replied  calmly.  "  If  I  can 
do  nothing  else  I  can  read  hearts.  She  loves  you, 
my  good  Saunders,  and  my  only  regret  is  that  the 
little  Princess's  sentiments  towards  myself  are  not 
characterised  by  a  like  ardour." 

The  detective's  words  made  a  considerable  impres- 
sion on  me.  If  he  had  read  my  heart  aright  it  was 
exceedingly  probable  that  his  interpretation  of  the 
Governess  was  equally  accurate.  I  had  imagined 
myself  in  love  with  an  icicle  ;  the  possibility  that 
my  affections  had  been  bestowed  on  a  warm-hearted 
woman  capable  of  appreciating  and  returning  my 
passion  came  upon  me  in  the  light  of  a  revelation. 
I  took  an  enormous  pleasure  in  her  society,  in  the 
mock  spiteful  banter  which  we  directed  so  keenly 
and  good-humouredly  against  each  other.  Was 
it  not  probable,  I  asked  myself,  that  she  herself 
took  at  least  an  equal  delight  in  that  barbed  persi- 
flage, that  something  more  than  her  intelligence 
was  pleasured  by  those  eloquent  discussions  in 
Frau  Mengler's  parlour.  I  hastily  made  up  my 
mind  to  put  my  fortunes  to  the  test,  and  for  the 
next  few  days  my  performances  on  the  curling  and 
bandy  rinks  were  so  execrable  that  for  very  shame 
I  determined  to  absent  myself  therefrom  till  my 
mind  had  been  steadied  by  the  joy  of  assured  posses- 
sion or  the  bitterness  of  unalterable  defeat. 

My    opportunities    for    declaring    myself    were 


FROST   AND    FRIENDSHIP      201 

numerous,  but  the  actual  occasion  of  my  proposal 
was  unsought  and  unpremeditated.  Troubled  in 
spirit  by  a  diabolical  error  I  had  made  on  the  curling 
rink  that  afternoon,  knocking  our  winning  stone  out 
of  the  "  house  "  and  thereby  giving  our  opponents 
a  big  "  end,"  I  was  wandering  after  a  solitary 
tea  down  a  snow  path  leading  to  an  open-air  shelter 
overlooking  the  valley  of  the  Niederkessel. 

It  was  a  beautiful  walk  and  a  perfect  evening, 
and  the  complete  solitude  was  soothing  to  my 
disturbed  spirit.  The  sun  had  set  behind  the 
mountains,  the  sky  was  full  of  the  wonderful  colours 
of  a  Weissheim  sunset,  and  in  their  majesty  of  glow- 
ing purity  and  cool  clear  radiance  they  reminded 
me  somehow  of  the  royal  Governess.  She  too  was 
beautiful  in  an  ethereal  unpassionate  way,  as 
superior  in  the  unblemished  purity  of  her  magnificent 
womanhood  as  the  colours  of  the  Weissheim  sky 
surpassed  the  murky  grandeur  of  a  city  sunset. 

The  buntings  twittered  over  head  and  the  un- 
frozen Niederkessel  murmured  responsively  a  thou- 
sand feet  below. 

I  had  entered  the  shelter  and  actually  taken  a 
pipe  from  my  pocket  before  I  perceived  that  I  was 
not  alone.  A  figure  in  a  white  beret  and  a  long 
blue-grey  cloak  was  already  seated  there,  and  a 
moment  later  I  knew  that  the  object  of  my  late 
comparison  was  beside  me. 

"  I  beg  your  pardon,"  I  began,  "  I  did  not  see 
you." 

"  There  is  no  occasion  to  apologise." 

*'  I  was  about  to  smoke." 


202      FROST   AND   FRIENDSHIP 

"  You  may  complete  your  intention." 

"  On  second  thoughts,"  I  replied,  putting  back 
my  pipe  into  my  pocket.     "  I  will  not." 

She  vouchsafed  no  further  comment,  so  I  pro- 
ceeded. 

"  It  is  a  beautiful  evening." 

She  smiled  contemptuously. 

"  It  is  so  beautiful,"  she  said,  "  that  it  is  really 
quite  unnecessary  to  make  conversation." 

"  Quite,"  I  retorted.  "  It  is  also  impossible  ; 
under  the  influence  of  Nature's  majesty  conversation 
makes  itself.  For  instance,  I  am  impelled  to  say 
that  the  beautiful  colours  of  the  heaven  reminded 
me  of  you." 

I  had  taken  the  plunge,  and  my  heart  began  to 
beat  rapidly  under  the  emotion  of  a  novel  experi- 
ence. 

My  companion  never  moved  a  muscle.  Silent 
and  perfectly  still  she  sat,  looking  straight  before 
her,  but  I  noticed  that  the  healthy  pink  of  her  cheek 
had  taken  a  deeper  hue. 

"  Is  not  that  rather  an  obvious  sort  of  compli- 
ment ?  "  she  asked  at  length  with  perfect  self- 
possession. 

"Very  obvious,  I  should  think." 

"  I  mean,  your  comparison  is  commonplace." 

"  I  was  not  trying  to  be  original.  I  was  merely 
stating  a  fact.  In  some  indefinable  way  the  sunset 
colours  reminded  me  of  you.  Their  beauty  and 
yours  have  something  akin,  that  is  all." 

She  turned  and  faced  me  now. 

"  And  did  you  walk  all  this  way  to  talk  about 


FROST    AND    FRIENDSHIP      203 

my  beauty  ?  "  she  asked,  and  her  tone  suggested 
rising  indignation. 

"  I  did  not  come  here  in  the  expectation  of  finding 
you  at  all.  Having  done  so,  I  wish  to  take  the 
opportunity  of  asking  you  to  be  my  wife." 

She  remained  several  seconds  in  silence,  and  the 
words  of  the  proverb  about  those  who  hesitate 
recurred  joyfully  to  my  mind.  Then  she  said 
calmly  : 

"  Mr.  Saunders,  do  you  know  why  you  like  me  ?  " 

*'  Love  you,"  I  substituted. 

"  Why  you  think  you  love  me  then  ?  " 

"  I  could  give  reasons,"  I  replied  ;  "  but  I  have 
only  an  hour  and  a  half  to  spare." 

She  winced  as  if  my  poor  witticism  had  caused 
her  pain. 

"  Listen,"  she  said  coldly.  "  You  are  attracted 
to  me  for  the  simple  reason  that  I  have  been — 
well,  rather  rude  to  you.  You  are  accustomed 
to  being  sought  after,  pampered,  spoilt.  You  have 
had  too  many  warm  baths.  I  have  acted  upon  you 
as  a  cold  douche.  At  first  it  was  unpleasant  if 
beneficial,  but  after  a  time  you  came  positively 
to  like  the  icy  shower.  It  was  healthy  and  bracing, 
and  I  do  myself  the  honour  of  believing  that  you 
would  miss  its  daily  tonic." 

"  I  could  not  exist  without  it." 

"  So  you  believe.  Had  I  behaved  to  you  as 
other  girls  do,  had  I  behaved  to  you  even  as  I  do 
towards  most  men,  would  you  have  grown  to  think 
you  loved  me  ?  " 

"  Possibly  not,  but  the  hypothesis  is  not  worth 


204      FROST   AND    FRIENDSHIP 

pursuing.  The  main  fact  is  that  I  am  asking  you 
to  be  my  wife. 

"  And  my  answer  is,  No." 

I  rose  impatiently  from  my  seat.  My  opinion 
after  all  had  been  the  correct  one,  not  the  detec- 
tive's.    I  had  been  making  love  to  an  icicle. 

"  You  are  not  human,"  I  cried  bitterly. 

"  Because  I  reject  your  advances  ?  Really  you 
do  yourself  more  than  justice." 

"  But  your  reasons,"  I  persisted,  ignoring  her 
rebuke. 

"  I  could  give  them,  but  I  have  only  an  hour 
and  a  half  to  spare." 

I  stamped  my  foot  with  annoyance. 

"  Is  this  the  time  for  flippancy  ? "  I  asked 
reproachfully.  '^■ 

"  You  seemed  to  think  so,"  she  retorted  quietly. 

I  looked  out  at  the  calming  glory  of  the  wondrous 
heavens.  The  evening  star  shone  white  above  the 
Eisenzahn,  like  a  ship  sailing  in  a  sea  of  exquisite 
violet.  It  seemed  to  flash  a  message  of  hope  to 
me.  My  heart  was  full,  and,  as  is  often  the  case 
under  the  circumstances,  my  speech  was  bald. 

"  Won't  you  reconsider  your  decision  ?  "  I  asked 
lamely.  There  was  a  moment's  pause,  and  then 
the  answer  came  low  and  with  a  suspicion  of  a  break 
in  it. 

"  Am  I  the  sort  of  person  to  reconsider  my  deci- 
sion ?  " 

I  almost  had  it  in  my  heart  to  throw  myself  at 
her  feet,  to  seize  her  hand,  to  utter  a  bold  "  Yes," 
but  pride   and  a  growing  anger  held  me  back.    I 


FROST   AND    FRIENDSHIP      205 

had  done  her  the  highest  honour  in  my  power, 
I  had  asked  her  to  be  my  wife,  not  once  but  twice. 
Wliy  should  I  risk  a  third  and  more  humihating 
rebuff.  It  might  conceivably  be  possible  to  thaw 
the  icicle,  but  was  it  a  man's  part  to  bend  lower 
than  I  had  bent,  to  ask  again  what  he  had  been 
twice  denied. 

I  turned  to  go,  and  taking  off  my  cap  said  frigidly, 
"  We  meet  at  dinner." 

"  We  meet  at  dinner — as  friends.     Au  revoir.'' 


CHAPTER   XVI 

"T  CONGRATULATE  you  on  your  victory. 
X  It  was  entirely  due  to  your  splendid  tackling 
and  accurate  shooting." 

It  was  a  fortnight  after  my  rebuff  related  in  the 
last  chapter,  and  the  words  were  addressed  to  me 
by  Father  Bemhard,  who  took  an  intelhgent  interest 
in  the  game  of  bandy. 

I  had  been  chosen  to  represent  Weissheim  against 
the  picked  men  of  Pulverstadt,  an  honour  which  had 
caused;  much  heart-burnings  amongst  the  more 
experienced  candidates  for  representative  honours. 

"  I  played  well,"  I  answered,  "as  I  am  now 
curling  well,  because  I  do  not  care  two  straws 
whether  I  play  well  or  not." 

The  priest  opened  his  eyes  rather  wide  at  my 
remark.  "  Come  into  my  room  and  have  a  chat," 
he  said. 

*' Come  rather  into  mine,"  I  replied.  "It  is 
not  quite  so  many  degrees  below  zero." 

We  adjourned  accordingly  to  my  comfortable 
little  sitting-room,  and  I  offered  my  companion  a 
cigar,  which  he  refused. 

"  I  wish  to  talk  to  you,"  he  began,  selecting  the 
most  uncomfortable  chair  in  the  room. 

"  The  desire  is  reciprocated." 


FROST    AND    FRIENDSHIP      207 

"  Saunders,"  he  said,  fixing  his  dark  eyes  seriously 
upon  me,  "  there  is  something  wrong  with  you. 
Your  play  was  brilliant — it  won  the  match  for 
Weissheim — but  it  was  brilliancy  of  the  reckless 
nature.  Another  week  of  such  heedless  vigour 
and  you  will  break  your  neck  to  a  certainty.  Of 
your  performances  on  the  curling  rink  I  know 
nothing  except  that  you  are  looked  upon  as  a  dan- 
gerous competitor  for  the  Caledonian  medal.  But 
as  regards  tobogganing,  I  myself  have  seen  you 
going  down  the  Kastel  run  with  a  ridiculously  small 
amount  of  raking." 

"  And  consequently  doing  very  good  times," 
I  interposed. 

"  On  nine  occasions  out  of  ten,  yes.  But  the 
time  will  come  when  you  will  over-shoot  David, 
and  there  will  be  one  less  competitor  for  the  Grim- 
land  Derby.  We  all  admire  pluck,  but  recklessness 
is  a  vice.  It  makes  us  all  uncomfortable,  and  is 
hardly  fair  on  your  painstaking  coach,  Miss  Anches- 
ter." 

"  My  painstaking  coach  is  not  over-burdened 
with  sensibility,"  I  retorted.  "  My  decease  would 
affect  her  far  less  than  the  lowering  of  her  record 
time  for  the  Kastel  run. 

"  You  wrong  her,  I  assure  you." 

"  I  fancy  not.  She  is  above  the  human  weak- 
nesses of  love  and  pity.  Her  spirit  soars  aloft 
about  the  peaks  of  the  Klauiberg  in  splendid 
isolation.  It  is  magnificent,  but  it  is  chilly  work 
following  it." 

"  You  talk  as  if  you  loved  her." 


2o8      FROST   AND    FRIENDSHIP 

"  Naturally,  my  dear  Father,  for  I  did  love  her." 

"  And  you  no  longer  do  so  ?  " 

"  Can  one  love  a  piece  of  marble  ?  Put  yourself 
in  imagination  before  the  loveliest  piece  of  statuary 
that  ever  left  the  sculptor's  hands.  It  is  altogether 
admirable,  but  can  you  love  it  ?  Is  not  the  nearest 
you  can  get  to  loving  it,  the  wish  that  it  could 
come  to  life,  or  that  you  should  meet  its  replica  in 
flesh  and  blood  ?  " 

"  Then  I  congratulate  you  on  the  ethereal  nature 
of  your  regard." 

"  Your  congratulations  are  misplaced.  Before 
I  came  here  I  was  sick  of  life — blas6,  bored,  rest- 
lessly idle,  a  rich  man  without  a  hobby,  a  lazy  man 
without  the  capacity  for  loafing.  The  life  here  did 
me  good.  The  sport  engrossed  my  mind,  the  dan- 
gerous condition  of  Weissheim  politics  stirred  my 
blood,  the  air,  the  sun,  the  gay  round  of  music, 
theatricals,  and  fancy-dress  balls  helped  to  make 
a  new  man  of  me.  I  say  helped,  for  a  greater  cause 
than  all  these  was  that  exceedingly  important 
factor  in  the  world's  history,  a  beautiful  woman. 
It  was  not  till  I  learned  that  she  could  never  care 
for  me  that  I  realized  how  extremely  pleasant  my 
existence  here  had  been  to  me,  how  utterly  different 
from  the  flat  formal  round  of  London's  sooty 
pleasures.  And  now,  well  I  am  not  a  whiner,  but 
I  believe  I  get  less  pleasure  out  of  life  than  the 
paralytic  old  folks  who  warm  their  frost-bitten  toes 
in  the  Weissheim  alms-houses." 

"  Disappointment  is  a  bitter  thing,  but  it  passes 
as  certainly  as  the  clouds  pass." 


FROST   AND    FRIENDSHIP       209 

I  shook  my  head.  "  Do  you  know  what  pain  is. 
Father  Bernhard,  real  hard  physical  pain,  night  and 
day,  unrelenting,  throbbing,  insistent  ?  I  tell  you 
there  isn't  an  agony  devised  by  the  ingenuity  of 
man  that  equals  the  torments  of  an  unrequited 
affection.  You  think  I  am  excited  and  emotional ; 
I  tell  you  no.  I  was  marching  straight  to  happiness 
and  the  gates  were  shut  in  my  face.  Do  you 
think  I  do  not  picture  to  myself  a  thousand  times 
a  day  the  life  that  lay  behind  those  gates,  the  life 
that  might  have  been  ?  Do  you  think  I  care  two 
straws  now  for  a  knock  on  the  bandy  rink  or  a 
spill  on  the  Kastel  run." 

"  You  need  spiritual  consolation." 

"  I  need  it  but  am  incapable  of  receiving  it. 
Ah !  Father,  it's  what  might  have  been  that 
tortures  us.  The  fellow  who  said  that  a '  sorrow's 
crown  of  sorrows  is  remembering  happier  things,' 
wrote  beautiful  English,  but  shocking  bad  philo- 
sophy. A  happy  memory  is  a  great  asset  to  a 
miserable  man,  but  the  contemplation  of  missed 
happiness  is  a  searing  iron  night  and  day." 

"  You  think  there  is  no  worse  thing  than  unre- 
quited love  ?  " 

"  I  am  certain  of  it." 

"  And  yet  I  tell  you  that  requited  love  may  be 
worse." 

"  Nonsense,"  I  said  impatiently. 

"  Nevertheless  it  is  so.  What  if  a  man  love 
another  man's  wife  ;  if  the  man  himself  is  bound 
by  vows  of  celibacy  ?  Is  it  not  a  fearful  thing  if 
the  woman  return  the  man's  guilty  passion  ?  " 

o 


210      FROST  AND   FRIENDSHIP  ' 

"  A  mere  hj^othetical  case,"  I  commented. 

"  Alas,  no ;  a  very  actual  case.  The  Queen  is 
beginning  to  love  me." 

For  the  first  time  for  fourteen  weary  days  I  took 
an  interest  in  something. 

"  You  still  retain  your  foolish  infatuation  for 
Her  Majesty  ?  " 

"  It  grows  day  by  day." 

"  And  nothing  I  say  as  to  the  Queen's  character 
can  disillusion  you  ?  " 

My  companion  sighed  heavily. 

"  You  cannot  say  anything  bad  enough  of  her," 
he  said.  "It  is  the  evil  in  her  that  appeals  to  the 
evil  in  me.  How  she  discovered  my  passion  is  a 
mystery,  for  I  hid  it  under  a  veil  of  severe  austerity 
and  frequent  rebuke.  But  having  discovered  it 
my  position  is  unbearable.  Unless  something  hap- 
pens I  must  go." 

"  You  know  her  nature  and  you  love  her  ?  "  I 
said.     "  I  cannot  understand  it." 

"  That  is  because  you  refuse  to  believe  in  the 
personahty  of  the  Devil." 

"  The  Devil !  "  I  said.  "  We  do  not  hve  in  the 
Middle  Ages.  I  beheve  in  evil,  for  it  is  omnipresent, 
but  not  in  a  tangible,  visible  Prince  of  Evil.  Do 
you  honestly  believe  in  a  being  with  horns  and 
hoof,  a  curly  tail,  and  an  odour  of  sulphur  ?  " 

A  slight  shudder  passed  through  the  priest's 
frame.  "  You  speak  lightly  of  such  things,"  he 
said,  "  as  some  men  speak  lightly  of  their  Creator. 
And  yet  your  flippant  description  was  not  an  in- 
accurate one." 


FROST   AND    FRIENDSHIP      211 

"  How  do  you  know  ?  "  *-^ 

"  Because  I  have  seen  him." 

At  this  remarkable  assertion  I  turned  uneasily 
in  my  chair.  A  man  who  confesses  to  have  seen 
the  devil  is  a  man  to  be  watched.  All  the  same  I 
was  distinctly  interested. 

"  Tell  me  about  it,"  I  said. 

"  It  was  a  week  ago.  I  awoke  after  a  fearful 
dream  and  there,  standing  in  the  middle  of  my  room, 
was  the  Prince  of  the  powers  of  the  air,  Abaddon 
the  destroyer,  and  by  his  side  his  henchman  Asch- 
medai,  the  lustful  fiend  of  Tobit." 

"  A  dream,"  I  said. 

"  It  was  no  dream,  or  I  should  have  been  con- 
scious of  waking  afterwards.  I  saw  them  as  plainly 
as  I  see  you  now,  and  the  face  of  Aschmedai  was 
like  the  face  of  Herr  Schneider,  save  that  he  had 
horns." 

I  shuddered  involuntarily.  The  man's  delusion 
was  uncanny  and  his  sincerity  unmistakeable. 

"  You  neither  smoke  nor  drink,"  I  said,  "  and 
from  what  I  have  seen  of  your  meals  you  live  chiefly 
upon  prunes  and  rice.  There  is  a  point  when  self- 
denial  becomes  intemperance.  Give  yourself  the 
advice  you  once  gave  me,  and  leave  Weissheim.  The 
air  is  too  strong  for  your  under-nourished  brain." 

He  shook  his  head  sadly. 

"  I  have  given  myself  that  advice  a  hundred 
times,"  he  said,  "  but  the  chains  of  Abaddon  are 
hard  to  break." 

He  left  me  in  a  state  of  great  depression,  and  in 
my  sympathy  for  him  I  lost  some  of  the  poignancy 


212      FROST   AND    FRIENDSHIP 

of  my  own  distress.  His  vision  of  Schneider  as  a 
demon  struck  me  as  most  curious,  and  as  a  further 
example  of  the  repulsion  which  the  detective 
managed  to  inspire  in  the  breasts  of  all  he  came  in 
contact  with.  That  the  Princess  Mathilde  had 
the  greatest  objection  to  his  society  was  obvious, 
for  that  outspoken  young  lady  made  little  attempt 
at  disguising  her  feelings.  And  yet  in  his  oily, 
ready-tongued  way  he  persisted  in  his  ambitious 
wooing ;  always  deferential  in  speech  if  subtly 
masterful  in  his  manner,  ever  heedless  of  rebuffs, 
confident  with  a  presumption  that  was  almost 
admirable  in  its  invincibihty. 

As  this  is  rather  an  account  of  political 
events  during  an  especially  eventful  winter,  in 
the  especially  eventful  country  of  Grimland,  than 
a  chronicle  of  my  own  feelings,  I  propose  to  hasten 
on  to  those  incidents  of  European  importance 
wherein  my  position  as  King  Karl's  guest 
afforded  me  special  opportunities  for  observa- 
tion. And  yet  it  seems  to  me  that  the  part  I 
played  in  that  drama  was  so  influenced  by  my  state 
of  mind  that  I  should  have  been  wrong  not  to  give 
some  indication  of  the  extreme  dejection  into  which 
I  was  plunged  at  this  period  of  my  existence.  I 
honestly  beUeve  it  was  the  unhappiest  period  of 
my  life.  My  sporting  successes,  which  would  in  the 
ordinary  way  have  afforded  me  the  keenest  satis- 
faction, merely  served  to  show  me  how  completely 
my  capacity  for  enjoyment  was  destroyed.  I  saw 
the  world  through  the  smoked  glasses  of  disappoint- 
ment.    I  knew  that  the  bright  colours  were  there. 


FROST    AND    FRIENDSHIP       213 

but  bright  and  dull  looked  much  alike  to  me.  As 
for  Miss  Anchester,  after  a  brief  period  during  which 
rebuke  and  raillery  gave  way  to  normal  manners, 
she  had  resumed  quickly  enough  her  former  role  of 
sharp-tongued  captiousness.  And  I,  whose  heart  had 
gone  out  irrevocably  to  a  marble^image,  played  my 
part  with  an  assumption  of  indifference  for  which 
the  unconquerable  sentiment  of  human  pride  was 
alone  responsible.  As  a  tobogganing  coach  she 
was  admirable,  critical  but  never  unjust,  and  had 
she  put  a  little  more  warmth  into  her  commendation 
of  meritorious  efforts  she  would  have  been  a  faultless 
trainer.  As  it  was  I  so  improved  under  her  tuition 
that  I  became  second  favourite  for  the  Grimland 
Derby  at  the  short  odds  of  four  to  one.  I  can  give 
no  idea  of  the  extraordinary  interest  aroused  by 
that  important  event  in  the  minds  of  Weissheimers, 
natives  and  visitors.  The  amount  of  betting  done 
was  tremendous,  and  the  odds  varied  from  day  to 
day.  Besides  the  local  heroes,  men  came  to  com- 
pete from  Switzerland,  from  St.  Moritz,  Davos 
and  Caux,  from  far  Sweden  and  further  Canada, 
The  excitement  for  days  before  the  race  Wcis  intense 
and  grew  hourly  keener.  Three  courses  had  to 
be  run,  and  the  man  whose  total  times  formed  the 
lowest  aggregate  was  adjudged  the  winner.  Max 
was  a  competitor,  and  so  was  Schneider,  and  so  was 
I  myself,  but  Miss  Anchester  for  some  reason  or 
other  refused  to  compete  again.  Stands  were 
erected  at  various  points  of  the  run  for  spectators 
to  view  the  proceedings  from,  cameras  occupied 
every  point  of  vantage,  while  a  full  cinematograph 


214      FROST   AND   FRIENDSHIP 

apparatus  was  posted  on  the  snowy  crest  of  Jona- 
than. To  give  a  detailed  account  of  the  proceedings 
would  be  to  labour  a  triumph  for  myself.  My  three 
courses  were  accomplished  in  lower  time  than  any 
one  else's,  and  my  last  run,  which  I  accomplished  in 
2  minutes  30^  seconds,  was  the  next  best  time  to 
Miss  Anchester's  record  of  the  previous  year.  To 
say  that  the  news  of  my  victory  did  not  afford  me 
momentary  pleasure  would  be  untrue.  Never- 
theless, the  mere  reflection  of  how  much  greater  the 
pleasure  would  have  been  under  other  circumstances 
turned  my  joy  into  something  very  hke  bitterness. 
Then,  as  I  walked  up  the  hill  towards  the  Marien- 
kastel,  the  cheering  began,  and  for  a  time  I  was 
forced  to  forget  myself.  Louder  and  louder  grew 
the  applause  as  I  dragged  my  winning  craft  behind 
me  towards  the  store-room  at  the  base  of  the  crow's 
nest.  There  the  popular  enthusiasm  reached  a 
head,  and  I  was  borne  shoulder  high  above  the  cheer- 
ing throng  back  again  towards  the  Brun-varad. 
For  the  moment  the  sensation  of  triumph  conquered 
melancholy,  and  I  wondered  vaguely  if  the  victory 
would  be  a  permanent  one. 

In  the  Palace  hall  I  met  Schneider.  He  congra- 
tulated me  warmly  on  my  success. 

"  You  go  to  the  ball  to-night,  of  course  ?  "  he  said 
after  I  had  thanked  him  for  his  effusive  felicitations. 

"  Certainly,  and  you  ?  " 

"  My  place  is  by  the  King's  side." 

"  I  thought  the  firing  incident  and  the  substi- 
tution of  Guides  for  Guards  had  quieted  things 
down." 


FROST   AND    FRIENDSHIP      215 

"  That  was  a  fortnight  ago.  Events  move 
quickly  in  Weissheim." 

'*  You  suspect  a  fresh  recrudescence  of  trouble  ?  " 

"  I  more  than  suspect  it.  I  have  been  looking 
into  the  Queen's  heart  through  the  uninteresting 
medium  of  the  Fraulein  von  Helder,  and  I  see 
something  very  hke  murder  in  it." 

I  had  lost  much  of  my  respect  for  the  detective's 
intuition,  but  politeness  restrained  me  from  sa5dng 
so. 

"  If  there  is  anything  I  can  do — "  I  began. 

"  There  is  nothing,"  he  interrupted,  "  save,  of 
course,  to  carry  a  weapon  of  defence." 

The  advice  amused  me,  for  I  had  never  done  such 
a  thing  in  my  life.  Nevertheless  as  I  was  dressing 
for  dinner  my  eyes  rested  on  the  leather-sheathed 
knife  that  the  Princess  had  given  me  as  a  cotillon 
present  on  the  night  of  Mrs.  Van  Troeber's  ball. 
It  was  the  nearest  thing  I  possessed  to  a  weapon 
of  defence,  and  smiling  at  the  dramatic  nature  of 
the  proceeding  I  slipped  it  into  the  breast  pocket 
of  my  evening  coat. 


CHAPTER   XVII 

AT  ten  o'clock  on  the  evening  of  the  sixth  of 
February  we  left  the  Brun-varad  for  the 
scene  of  the  Schattenberg's  great  annual  ball 

In  the  first  sleigh  rode  Miss  Anchester  and  myself, 
Herr  Schneider  and  the  commander-in-chief.  Fol- 
lowing us  was  the  sleigh  containing  the  Fraulein 
von  Helder  and  two  other  Maids-of -Honour.  Lastly 
came  the  State  equipage  containing  the  King  and 
Queen,  a  magnificent  vehicle  drawn  by  six  postil- 
lioned  and  gorgeously-trapped  bays. 

It  was  a  typical  Weissheim  night,  stilly  cold,  the 
true  chiaroscuro  of  starlit,  snow-lit  darkness.  The 
approach  to  the  Marienkastel  was  illuminated 
by  fairy  lamps  and  Chinese  lanterns,  while  the  big 
classical  gateway  of  the  modern  facade  was  flanked 
by  groups  of  heavy  bronze  statuary  bearing  electric 
arc  lights.  Within,  a  multitude  of  powdered  red- 
coated  menials,  a  profusion  of  southern  flowers, 
fragrance,  warmth,  brilliancy,  and  the  indescribable, 
atmosphere  of  formal  and  exalted  festivity. 

The  Grand  Duke  in  the  full  dress  of  a  Grimland 

General  (a  costume  which  suited  him  far    better 

than  ordinary  evening  clothes),  his  broad  breast  all 

stars  and  decorations,  his  swarthy  face  all  smiles, 

welcomed  us  with  a  splendid  assumption  of  cordiality, 

3ie 


FROST   AND    FRIENDSHIP       217 

Max,  arrogantly  handsome  in  his  Guardsman's 
uniform,  nonchalant,  but  a  shade  less  bored  than 
usual,  condescended  to  offer  us  his  white-gloved 
hand.  The  Princess  Mathilde,  in  a  marvellous 
ivory  satin  dress,  a  diamond  coronet  blazing  in  her 
dull  black  hair,  seemed  to  be  transformed  from  a 
romping  girl  to  a  stately  queen.  The  transforma- 
tion, as  I  shortly  discovered,  was  purely  superficial. 

"  You  mustn't  stare,  Mr.  Saunders,"  she  said, 
"  it's  rude." 

"  I  am  a  great  admirer  of  young  women  and  old 
lace,"  I  replied.  "  When  I  behold  such  an  unique 
combination  of  two  excellences  my  eyes  forget 
their  good  manners." 

"  But  your  tongue  does  not  forget  the  arts  of 
flattery.  Well,  I  forgive  you,  because  I  rather  like 
compliments,  even  obviously  insincere  ones,  and 
if  you're  very  good,  you  may  dance  numbers  five 
and  seventeen  with  me." 

"  The  reward  is  certainly  worth  while  being  very 
good  for,"  I  said,  writing  my  initials  on  her  card, 
and  noticing  with  a  certain  amount  of  complacency 
that  they  were  the  only  two  vacant  spaces  of  her 
programme. 

After  booking  a  couple  of  waltzes  with  Miss 
Anchestei,  a  polka  with  Fraulein  von  Helder,  and  a 
set  of  Lancers  with  Mrs.  Van  Troeber,  not  the  least 
gorgeously  arrayed  member  of  that  distinguished 
gathering,  I  took  up  a  position  at  the  side  of  the 
room,  and  leaning  against  a  deeply-fluted  pilaster, 
indulged  in  the  passive  deUghts  of  an  amused  and 
critical   survey.    A   quadrille   was   in   progress,   a 


2i8      FROST    AND    FRIENDSHIP 

stately  simple  dance,  much  affected  in  these  parts, 
and  one  which,  spite  of  its  apparent  simplicity,  I 
had  made  no  effort  to   become  conversant  with. 

After  my  exhilarating  experiences  in  the  Grimland 
Derby,  I  was  more  than  content  to  play  the  part  of 
spectator.  The  ball-room  itself,  a  huge,  modern 
chamber  brilliantly  illuminated  by  enormous  elec- 
troliers and  innumerable  wall  brackets,  and  decor- 
ated with  rococo  plaster-work,  was  as  ornate  and 
quite  as  tasteless  as  the  saloon  of  a  big  London  hotel. 

In  spite  of  its  size,  the  room  was  well  filled,  and  the 
standard  of  good  looks  and  feminine  adornment 
sufficiently  high  to  please  all  but  the  hopelessly 
hj^ercritical.  Certainly  it  pleased  me.  The  day 
had  been  one  of  triumph  for  me,  a  day  in  which  I 
had  tasted  to  the  full  the  sweets  of  popular  admira- 
tion. The  cheers  of  the  enthusiastic  crowds  as  I 
was  borne  shoulder-high  to  the  gates  of  the  royal 
Palace  were  still  ringing  in  my  ears.  The  emptiness 
of  fame  was  recognized  but  not  felt.  For  the  moment 
I  was  the  most  admired,  the  most  envied  man  in 
Grimland,  and  my  position  afforded  me  the  keenest 
satisfaction.  I  knew  that  there  was  scarcely  a 
woman  in  the  room,  however  beautiful  of  form, 
however  overpoweringly  numerous  her  quarterings, 
who  would  not  be  proud  to  dance  with  me  to-night. 

Vaguely  I  despised  myself  for  the  satisfaction  the 
situation  afforded  me,  but  the  satisfaction  remained, 
unshaken  and  blatantly  unassailable. 

The  band  commenced  to  play  the  strains  of  the 
Eton  boating  song,  and  I  remembered  that  I  was 
engaged  to  dance  that  enchanting  waltz  with  Miss 


FROST    AND    FRIENDSHIP       219 

Anchester.  The  recollection  afforded  the  necessary 
damper  to  my  pride.  The  one  woman  in  the  room 
who  set  no  value  on  my  exploits  was  the  one  who 
alone  was  entitled  to  a  share  in  my  congratulations, 
Miss  Anchester,  my  capable,  practical,  but  unenthu- 
siastic  coach. 

I  found  her  standing  by  the  King's  side,  and  as  I 
approached,  I  wondered  if  she  were  really  the 
handsomest,  the  most  aristocratic-looking  and  the 
best-dressed  woman  in  the  room,  or  whether  I  was 
merely  suffering  from  the  usual  delusions  of  the 
ordinary  love-sick  idiot. 

"  The  floor  is  very  good  and  the  band  is  excellent," 
I  began,  as  we  lapsed  into  the  soft  swing  of  the 
fascinating  measure.  "  I  believe  these  are  the 
correct  platitudes  to  utter  in  a  ball-room." 

Miss  Anchester  refused  to  smile. 

"  You  don't  alter  much,  do  you  ?  "  she  said 
thoughtfully. 

"  I  hope  not,"  I  replied,  "  a  change  for  the  better 
is  hardly  conceivable." 

"  Not  to  a  limited  intelligence." 

"  You  do  not  alter  much  either,"  I  retored. 

"  That  is  no  doubt  a  pity." 

"  Not  for  the  world  at  large,"  I  replied.  "  Mustard 
is  a  popular  condiment,  though  personally  I  never 
touch    it." 

"  Do  you  know  that  you  are  rather  rude  ?  "  she 
asked,  in  her  usual  tone,  without  banter  and  without 
annoyance. 

"  I  am  beginning  to  suspect  it,"  I  repUed  calmly. 
"  The  simile  was  a  trifle  piquant." 


220      FROST   AND    FRIENDSHIP 

"  Tell  me,"  she  said,  changing  the  subject  abruptly, 
"  don't  you  think  the  Princess  Mathilde  looks 
perfectly  lovely  ?  " 

"  She  is  certainly  very  pretty,"  I  conceded. 

"  Why  qualify  the  appreciation  ?  "  demanded 
my  partner.  "  The  Princess  is  a  remarkably  beau- 
tiful girl,  and  a  very  nice  one." 

"  I  will  not  qualify  your  last  statement,"  I  said. 
"  The  Princess  Mathilde  is  a  charming  girl." 

"  She  is  very  much  in  love  with  hfe." 

"  The  correct  attitude  to  adopt  towards  that 
doubtful  blessing,"  I  remarked. 

"  Then  why  not  adopt  it  ?  " 

"  Because  one  cannot  force  one's  inclinations. 
Nature  intended  me  to  be  morbid,  like  Herr  Schnei- 
der. Look  at  him  there,  basking  in  the  Princess's 
smile  like  a  toad  in  the  sunshine.  He  is  not  really 
happy.  His  lips  smile,  his  eyes  twinkle,  his  features 
express  pleasurable  attention,  but  at  least  half  his 
mind  is  elsewhere,  plotting  for  the  King's  safety, 
calculating  his  year's  salary,  analysing  his  own  sensa- 
tions, and  wondering  whether  anything  in  this 
world  is  worth  having  or  doing,  saying  or  thinking 
or  listening  to." 

"  You  hit  him  off  perfectly,"  said  my  companion  ; 
"  so  well  indeed,  that  I  am  forced  to  suspect  a 
similar  lack  of  concentration  on  your  own  part." 

"  In  other  words,"  I  said,  "  you  think  I  am  not 
enjo5^ng  myself." 

"  I  think  it  is  quite  possible." 

At  the  risk  of  being  rude  I  held  my  peace.  The 
day  had  given  me  pleasure  in  perhaps  its  highest 


FROST   AND    FRIENDSHIP       221 

form,  namely  a  deeply  coveted  success  at  an  exhil- 
arating sport.  The  memory  of  the  pleasure  was 
with  me  still,  tricked  out  and  garnished  with  all  the 
sensuous  embelUshments  that  music  and  beauty 
could  afford  ;  but  the  one  ingredient  necessary  to 
happiness  was  lacking.  To  put  my  thoughts  into 
words  was  to  make  a  barely  veiled  avowal,  and  the 
reasons  for  not  doing  so  being  overwhelming,  I 
held  my  peace. 

At  the  conclusion  of  the  dance  I  made  a  formal 
suggestion  anent  refreshments.  To  my  surprise 
my  companion  fell  in  with  it. 

•'  I  should  like  a  glass  of  champagne,  please,"  she 
said.  "  After  all,  hfe's  greatest  joys  are  champagne 
and  diamonds,  and  if  I  am  denied  one  there  is  no 
reason  why  I  should  not  enjoy  the  other." 

I  smiled.  The  insincerity  of  these  abominable  sen- 
timents would  have  been  palpable  in  a  far  more 
worldly  creature  than  the  royal  Governess,  and  the 
unwonted  flippancy  of  her  utterance  was  quite  out  of 
keeping  with  the  normal  tone  of  her  remarks. 

"  What  are  you  smiling  at  ?  "  she  asked,  in  all 
apparent  seriousness. 

"  At  your  new-bom  profligacy." 

"  Thanks  very  much.  First  I  am  compared  to 
mustard,  then  I  am  accused  of  profligacy.  Your 
manners  are,  if  possible,  deteriorating." 

"  I  hate  good  manners  in  a  man,"  I  retorted,  as 
we  approached  the  refreshment  bar ;  "  they  are 
like  the  perpetual  wearing  of  patent  leather  boots. 
They  denote  the  fool  or  the  knave." 

"  When  will  you  cease  to  moralise  ?  " 


222       FROST    AND    FRIENDSHIP 

"  As  soon  as  you  have  finished  your  cham- 
pagne." 

"That  will  be  never.  My  profligacy  is  a  poor, 
half-fledged  thing.  I  sip  the  cup  of  dissipation,  but 
am  not  yet  capable  of  emptying  a  full  glass.  " 

I  looked  at  her  curiously.  Her  manner  had 
undergone  a  palpable  change,  and  I  who  had  desired 
nothing  so  much  as  an  alteration  in  her  behaviour, 
was  vaguely  displeased. 

At  this  juncture,  the  King  and  General  Meyer 
strolled  into  the  buffet  talking  together  in  low  tones. 
From  the  latter's  mask-like  features  it  was  impossible 
as  at  all  times,  to  learn  anything,  but  from  the  King's 
heavy  frown  I  gathered  that  their  discussion  was  of 
a  serious  nature. 

"  Well,  Saunders,"  said  His  Majesty,  brightening 
visibly  as  his  gaze  fell  upon  us,  and  helping  himself 
to  a  glass  of  champagne.  ''  Here's  to  the  Winner  of 
the  Grimland  Derby.    Prosit  !  " 

"  Here's  to  our  strong-nerved  Enghsh  friend," 
said  the  General,  raising  his  glass.  "  Prosit.''* 

"  Here's  to  that  dashing  tobogganer,  Mr.  Saun- 
ders," said  Miss  Anchester,  following  suit.     "  Prosit*^ 

"  Many  thanks,"  I  said,  bowing.  "  My  felicity 
is  now  complete.     Is  Your  Majesty  dancing  ?  " 

"  I  have  been,"  said  the  King,  "  And  what  is 
more.  Miss  Anchester  has  promised  to  dance  the 
next  dance  with  me." 

"  The  music  is  beginning,"  said  the  General,  and 
a  minute  later  he  and  I  were  alone  in  the  buffet, 
save  for  the  gorgeously  arrayed  attendants. 

"  What  a  fine  couple  they  make,"   mused  the 


FROST   AND    FRIENDSHIP      223 

commander-in-chief.  "  I  wish  the  King  would 
divorce  his  present  gracious  and  high-bom  spouse.'* 

"  And  marry  his  gracious  and  comparatively 
humbly-born  Governess  ?  " 

General  Meyer  nodded.  "  I  could  feel  loyal  to  a 
Queen  like  that,"  he  said. 

"  She  must  indeed  be  fascinating." 

My  companion  smiled. 

"  You  think  my  loyalty  needs  a  little  rousing," 
he  said. 

"  It  is  hardly  of  the  fervid  type,"  I  replied,  "  but 
doubtless  serviceable  enough  as  far  as  the  King  is 
concerned." 

"  If  I  were  a  novelist,"  he  went  on,  "I  should 
engage  the  King  to  Miss  Anchester,  and  you  to  the 
Princess  Mathilde." 

"  And  yourself  to  Mrs.  Van  Troeber." 

"  No,"  he  replied.  "  That  is  a  matter  for  fact 
rather  than  fiction.  Congratulate  me.  The  divine 
widow  has  made  me  the  happiest  General  in  Grim- 
land." 

"  That  is  saying  little." 

"  The  happiest  Jew  in  Europe,  then." 

"  That  is  saying  a  great  deal,  but  I  hope  not  too 
much.  I  congratulate  you  with  all  my  heart  and 
drink  to  your  felicity.  The  alliance  will  be  an 
ideal  one  of  brains  and  beauty." 

"  Many  thanks.  By  the  way,  will  you  stay  till 
the  end  of  the  dance  ?  " 

"  As  hkely  as  not,"  I  replied.  "  I  do  not  like 
dances  as  a  rule,  but  am  enjoying  this  in  a  placid 
sort  of  way.     It  is  something  of  a  spectacle." 


224      FROST   AND    FRIENDSHIP 

"It  is  certainly  something  of  a  spectacle  to  see 
the  Grand  Duke  so  uniformly  amiable.  Still  more 
so  to  see  young  Max  disporting  himself  with  the 
abandon  of  a  healthy-minded  schoolboy." 

"  It  smacks  of  the  unnatural,"  I  said. 

The  General  shrugged  his  shoulders.  '"  It  has 
made  Schneider  very  uneasy,"  he  said.  "  That  man 
is  a  marvel.  He  reads  the  hearts  and  minds  of  men 
like  an  open  book." 

"  Expurgating  the  noblest  chapters,"  I  commented. 

"  Perhaps,  but  he  is  very  wonderful.  If  I  were 
the  novelist  again,  I  would  marry  him  to 
the  Fraulein  von  Helder.  It  would  be  poetic 
justice."  And  with  another  shrug  of  his  high 
shoulders  and  a  Semitic  smirk  he  left  me. 

Slowly  the  evening  wore  on  with  its  endless  round 
of  waltzes,  polkas,  cotillon  and  quadrille.  Part  per- 
former, part  spectator,  I  passed  my  time  now  dancing 
with  the  Princess  Mathilde,  who  was  in  her  very  best 
spirits  and  trod  the  floor  like  a  fairy,  now  with  the 
Fraulein  von  Helder,  who  was  also  in  her  very  best 
spirits  and  trod  the  floor  like  an  elephant.  Again, 
in  periods  of  pleasurable  inactivity,  I  watched  the 
Grand  Duke  as  he  threw  himself  with  the  robust 
vigour  of  his  middle  age  and  a  certain  native  dignity 
into  the  rousing  measure  of  the  Polish  Mazurka. 
I  noted  Herr  Schneider,  here,  there  and  everywhere, 
always  smiling,  always  gesticulating,  unctuously 
polite,  a  perfect  dancer,  a  marvellously  glib  talker, 
yet  nowhere  welcome. 

Soon  after  one  o'clock  their  Majesties  departed, 
and  an  hour  later  the  crowd  had  thinned  visibly. 


FROST   AND    FRIENDSHIP      225 

I  looked  at  my  programme.  I  had  only  one  more 
dance  booked,  number  seventeen,  and  I  had 
promised  most  faithfully  to  dance  that  with  the 
Princess  Mathilde. 

The  Brun-varad  party  had  all  left,  but  yawningly 
allegiant,  I  stayed  behind.  My  reward  was  long 
in  coming  for  extras  were  inserted,  and  I  had  re- 
gretted my  promise  not  a  little  before  the  familiar 
strains  of  La  lettre  de  Manon  proclaimed  the  end  of 
my  gaping  tryst. 

"  What  a  shame  to  keep  you  up  all  this  time," 
said  the  Princess,  mockingly,  as  we  met  by  the  flower- 
wreathed  pUlars  of  the  music  gallery.  "  I've 
noticed  you  supporting  the  wall  nobly  for  a  long 
time.  Pool  little  thing,  is  it  pining  for  its  bed  after 
its  noble  exertions  ?  " 

"  I  am  pining  to  dance  my  favourite  waltz  with 
you,"  I  said,  politely.  "  My  gaping  is  a  symptom 
of  excitement,  not  fatigue." 

"  Come  along  then,"  she  said  merrily,  "  let  us 
enjoy  ourselves  while  we  are  young.  How  lovely 
Miss  Anchester  looked  to-night." 

"  Almost  divine  !  "  I  asserted. 

"  Don't  be  horrid,"  said  the  Princess,  laughing. 
"She  is  very  beautiful." 

"  In  disposition  no  less  than  feature,"  I  assented. 
**  Her  perfection  is  angelic,  and  being  a  mere  man, 
my  admiration  for  an  angel  is  naturally  somewhat 
distant." 

"  You  should  whisper  sweet  nothings  in  her 
ear." 

"  Thank  you,"  I  said.     "  My  ordinary  conversa- 

P 


226      FROST   AND    FRIENDSHIP 

tion  is  quite  foolish  enough  to  bring  down  her  rebuke. 
I  tremble  to  contemplate  her  scorn  for  a  sentimental 
conversation." 

"  I  shouldn't  think  you  were  much  good  at  senti- 
ment," laughed  my  partner. 

"  I  am  a  perfect  fool  at  it,"  I  admitted.  "  But 
I  am  very  efficient  at  supper.  Have  you  supped 
yet  ?  " 

"  Once." 

"  And  I  once  also.  I  have  expelled  Nature  with 
a  knife  and  fork — tamen  usque  recunet.  In  other 
words,  I  have  developed  my  second  appetite  as  a 
runner  develops  his  second  wind." 

We  made  our  way  to  the  supper  room,  which  was 
almost  empty,  and  made  a  praiseworthy  attack  on 
some  mayoimaise  of  chicken  and  a  bottle  of  '89 
Pommery  and  Greno. 

There  were  several  more  dances  on  the  programme, 
but  the  Princess  showed  no  desire  to  curtail  our 
tete-^-tete. 

"  I  have  enjoyed  myself  this  evening,"  she  said, 
fervently. 

"  Don't  speak  of  enjoyment  in  the  past,"  I  said. 
"  Surely  the  present  is  enjoyable  enough.  I  always 
think  the  light  refreshment  at  the  conclusion  of  a 
dance  is  the  acme  of  pleasure.  At  least,  there  is  only 
one  higher  rung  on  the  ladder  of  enjoyment." 

"  And  that  is  ?  " 

"  The  cigar  after  the  hght  refreshment." 

"  Then  you  can  climb  to  the  highest  rung  of  your 
sensuous  ladder." 

"  Not  here  ?  " 


FROST   AND    FRIENDSHIP      227 

"  No  :  but  I  can  take  you  to  a  place  where  you 
can  smoke." 

"  By  myself  ?  " 

"  No,  in  my  society — if  you  can  tolerate  it." 

I  smiled.  I  had  always  imagined  princesses  to 
be  somewhat  rigorously  protected  beings,  hedged  in 
and  fenced  by  every  restraint  that  the  ingenuity 
of  etiquette  and  court  convention  could  devise. 
Yet  this  undeniably  charming  creature  in  the  first 
flush  of  her  inexperienced  womanhood  was  not 
only  free  from  such  watchful  supervision,  but  was 
unhampered  in  herself  by  any  artificially  cultivated 
sense  of  restraint.  If  ever  a  girl  was  natural,  whole- 
somely-minded and  altogether  loveable,  it  was  the 
bright-eyed,  bright-souled  little  Princess  who  shared 
my  supper  table. 

"  The  suggestion  is  worthy  of  you,"  I  said,  slowly. 
"  That  is  to  say,  it  is  admirable." 

"  Then  you  will  come  and  smoke  in  my  boudoir  ?  " 

There  was  an  ill-concealed  eagerness  in  her  tone, 
and  her  eyes  seemed  to  wait  expectantly  for  my 
acquiescence. 

Some  chance  words  of  General  Meyer  recalled 
themselves  to  my  puzzled  brain.  "  The  wildest 
blood  in  Europe  runs  in  that  little  witch's  veins," 
he  had  once  said.  Well,  maybe,  but  it  was  impos- 
sible to  con  the  schoolgirl  merriment  on  her  pretty 
face  and  doubt  its  quintessential  innocence. 

"  The  proposal  is  an  alluring  one,"  I  said  slowly. 
"  The  question  is,  does  your  father  approve  of  youf 
taking  your  partners  to  smoke  in  your  bou- 
doir ?  " 


228      FROST   AND    FRIENDSHIP 

"  You  are  afraid  of  my  father  being  angry  with 
you  ?  " 

"  Not  in  the  least.  I  am  afraid  of  his  being  angry 
with  you." 

"Well,  then,"  she  laughed,  "that's  all  right, 
because  if  you  aren't  afraid  of  my  father,  I'm  not 
in  the  very  least.  Besides,"  she  went  on,  seeing 
me  still  hesitate,  "  he  doesn't  mind  that  sort  of 
thing  in  the  least.     Why  should  he  ?  " 

"  Why  indeed  ?  "  I  echoed. 

"  I  shall  be  horribly  offended  if  you  don't 
come." 

"  So  you  said  once  when  you  invited  me  to  '  bob- 
sleigh '." 

"  Oh  !  "  she  laughed,  "  then  I  had  a  motive." 

"  Well,"  I  said,  rising,  "  I  suppose  I  must  fall  in 
with  your  unconventional  schemes." 

"  Conventionality  has  little  part  in  the  character 
of  the  Schattenbergs,"  she  said,  as  we  left  the  room. 

Instead  of  returning  to  the  ball-room,  we  passed 
down  a  side  passage  to  the  left.  Another  turn  to  the 
right,  a  couple  of  flights  of  stairs,  and  we  passed 
through  a  swing  doorway  to  an  unlit  corridor  over- 
looking a  snow-carpeted  courtyard. 

"  Now  we  are  in  the  ancient  part  of  the  Marien- 
kastel,"  remarked  my  fair  guide,  gazing  out  of  the 
window  ;  "it  was  from  that  comer  tourelle  that 
the  Dukes  of  Schattenberg  hung  their  prisoners  of 
war  in  the  olden  days." 

"  A  curious  family  yours,"  I  commented. 

"  Our  family  history  is  the  most  romantic  in 
Europe,"  she  said  simply,  halting  before  a  low  door 


FROST   AND    FRIENDSHIP       229 

opening  on  our  right.  "It  is  a  thousand  pities  we 
live  in  such  a  prosaic  age." 

"  A  shghtly  bloodthirsty  regret,"  I  remarked, 
thinking  of  the  prisoners,  and  following  her  into  a 
pitch-dark  room  where  I  waited  for  the  light  to  be 
turned  on. 

I  heard  the  click  of  an  electric  light  switch,  and 
after  the  half-second  necessary  for  the  adaptation 
of  my  vision  I  found  I  was  gazing  into  the  polished 
barrel  of  a  revolver. 


CHAPTER   XVIII 

IT  was  Max  who  was  holding  the  lethal  weapon 
that  threatened  my  inoff ending  head  :  Max, 
in  the  green  and  gold  tunic  of  his  Guardsman's 
uniform  and  his  white  kid  dancing  gloves.  Behind 
him  was  the  Grand  Duke,  no  longer  smilingly 
affable  and  courteously  gay,  but  scowling,  menacing, 
a  grim  silent  figure  dramatically  suggestive  of  pent 
up  violence,  with  danger  written  in  his  fierce  black 
eyes  and  the  deep  ploughed  lines  of  his  swarthy 
brow.  At  his  side  stood  the  Princess  Mathilde 
gazing  fixedly  at  me  with  a  look  that  was  half 
excitement  and  half  shame-faced  merriment. 

"  If  you  move  I  shall  fire,"  said  Max  grimly. 

"  In  that  case,"  I  replied,  "  I  shall  endeavour 
to  keep  perfectly  still." 

"  Good  ;  we  don't  want  to  hurt  you,  but  for 
purposes  of  our  own  it  is  necessary  to  tie  you  up. 
Kindly  get  into  that  arm-chair." 

I  recalled  Schneider's  advice  to  me  to  arm  myself, 
and  remembered  the  knife  in  my  breast  pocket, 
but  fortunately  refrained  from  making  any  in- 
voluntary movement  in  that  direction. 

"It  is  no  use  meeting  force  majeure  by  force 
inferieure,^'  I  said,  philosophically,  complying  almost 
instantly  with  his  request. 


FROST   AND    FRIENDSHIP       231 

"  Not  a  bit.  You  submitted  to  force  majeure 
that  day  we  tried  to  stop  you  going  to  Heldersburg, 
but  you  got  there  all  the  same.  You're  a  crafty 
beggar,  Saunders,  but  we  don't  mean  letting  you 
outwit  us  this  time." 

I  submitted  to  the  indignity  of  being  bound  hand 
and  foot  to  the  armchair  in  which  I  had  perforce 
seated  myself.  The  process  was  accomplished  with 
a  thin  tough  cord  and  the  united  efforts  of  the  Grand 
Duke  and  his  arrogant  offspring,  and  as  far  as  I  was 
a  judge  of  such  matters,  the  tieing  up  seemed  to 
be  done  on  thoroughly  practical  and  scientific  lines. 

"  Might  I  enquire  the  reason  for  this  interference 
with  the  liberty  of  the  subject  ?  "  I  asked. 

"  Yes,"  said  Max,  pulling  vigorously  at  a  final 
knot.  "  We're  making  a  descent  on  the  Brun-varad. 
This  precious  regiment  of  Guides  that  the  King 
and  Meyer  thought  so  loyal,  are  loyal  only  to  the 
longest  purse.  The  sentinels  on  guard  to-night 
are  our  sworn  allies  ;  the  barracks  at  Weissheim 
are  full  of  loyal  soldiers  waiting  to  shout,  "  long 
live  Fritz  the  First,  King  of  Grimland !  Long 
live  the  Schattenbergs  !  Once  we  have  obtained 
possession  of  the  royal  Person  the  revolution  is 
accomplished.  The  country  hungers  for  a  change 
of  dynasty  as  a  prisoner  hungers  for  a  change  of 
diet.  On  all  sides  the  situation  will  be  received 
with  enthusiasm." 

Something  of  the  romance  of  the  occasion  had 
stirred  the  young  Prince's  sluggish  blood  and  lent 
a  fire  to  his  dull  eye,  a  colour  to  his  pale  cheek.  For 
once  he  had  found  work  congenial  to  his  blase 


232      FROST   AND    FRIENDSHIP 

mind,  something  so  wild  and  dangerous  that  he 
had  half  thrown  off  the  air  of  well-bred  boredom 
that  had  seemed  a  part  and  parcel  of  his  nature. 
On  the  other  hand,  the  Grand  Duke  was  singularly 
calm  at  the  congenial  prospect  of  violence  and 
personal  danger.  He  never  uttered  a  word,  his 
frown  never  relaxed,  only  his  fine  white  teeth  moved 
ceaselessly  with  a  slight  grinding  motion  as  if  his 
fierce  spirit  chafed  and  fretted  to  commence  his 
reckless  enterprise.  His  thoughts  were  obviously 
rather  on  the  big  deed  that  was  to  come  than  on 
the  trivial  detail  which  preceded  it. 

"  And  you  do  me  the  honour,"  I  said,  "  of 
fancying  my  presence  at  the  Brun-varad  might 
upset  your  carefully  planned  coup  de  main.** 

"  You're  on  the  wrong  side,  Saunders,"  said  Max, 
*'  and  we  fancy,  rightly  or  wrongly,  that  you  are  a 
more  dangerous  opponent  than  either  the  foxy 
old  Jew  or  the  fiat-faced  detective." 

"  I  am  highly  flattered,"  I  replied,  not  without 
truth,  "  but  is  it  not  rather  rash  to  tell  me  all  your 
plans  before  putting  them  into  execution  ?  " 

"  Of  course,  if  you  think  that,"  said  Max  grimly 
producing  his  revolver  again. 

"  On  second  thoughts,"  I  said,  laughing,  "  I 
perceive  that  the  imprudence  is  apparent  rather 
than  real.  By  no  means  can  a  trussed  fowl  avert 
a  revolution." 

Max  laughed  his  rare  laugh. 

"  You're  not  a  bad  sort,  Saunders,"  he  said ; 
"  and  we  don't  wish  you  any  harm.  You're  better 
off  here  than  dodging  bullets  in  the  Brun-varad." 


FROST    AND    FRIENDSHIP       233 

"  Come,"  said  the  Grand  Duke  breaking  his 
silence  for  the  first  time,  "  we  must  return  to  the 
ballroom  and  be  there  till  the  last  guest  leaves. 
We  ought  to  be  able  to  make  a  start  at  half-past 
three." 

"  I  hope  so,"  said  Max,  and  with  a  cheerfully 
insulting  nod  to  me  he  followed  his  parent  from  the 
room. 

The  moment  the  door  was  shut  behind  them  the 
Princess  clapped  her  hands  together  and  eyed  me 
with  mocking  laughing  eyes. 

"  And  you're  not  ashamed  of  yourself  ? "  I 
said  quietly. 

"  A  little.     But  it's  all  so  droll." 

"  Your  sense  of  humour  is  peculiar,"  I  retorted. 
"  There  are  plenty  of  things  to  laugh  at  in  the  world 
besides  violence  and  treachery." 

"  Now  you're  getting  sulky." 

"  Does  it  not  occur  to  you,"  I  asked,  "  that  my 
good  nature  may  not  be  inexhaustible  ?  You 
lure  me  up  here  under  false  pretences,  and  I  am 
bound  hand  and  foot  while  a  vile  plot  is  being 
carried  out  against  a  noble  gentleman  and  a  friend. 
It  is  humorous  no  doubt — all  breaches  of  hospitality 
are." 

"  You're  very,  very  sulky  indeed.  In  the  first 
place  the  King  may  be  a  friend  of  yours,  but  he's 
not  a  noble  gentleman  at  all,  but  a  scoundrel  and  a 
traitor  in  the  pay  of  Austria.  Father  and  Max 
are  just  going  to  put  him  quietly  out  of  the  way 
so  that  he  can't  do  any  more  harm  to  the  country." 

"  In  plain  language,  murder  him."     I  interposed. 


234      FROST   AND    FRIENDSHIP 

The  Princess's  eyes  flashed  indignantly. 

"  Certainly  not,"  she  cried.  "  There  is  to  be  no 
bloodshed  in  the  proceedings.  Do  you  suppose 
I  should  have  lent  my  help  to  the  plot  if  there  had 
been  a  possibility  of  bloodshed  in  it  ?  " 

"  I  think  you  are  capable  of  anything,"  I  said 
deliberately. 

She  looked  me  full  in  the  face. 

"  You  nasty,  evil-tempered  man,"  she  said  with 
slow  emphasis.  "  You're  as  cross  as  you  can  be, 
and  absolutely  horrid.  I  warned  you  when  we 
first  met  that  my  invitations  must  be  regarded  with 
suspicion  unless  they  were  particularly  specified 
as  guileless,  and  now  that  you've  blundered  into 
a  trap,  instead  of  taking  your  defeat  good-humour- 
edly,  you're  as  disagreeable  and  evil-tempered  as 
possible.  Ugh  !  I've  a  good  mind  not  to  give  you 
anything  to  smoke." 

For  the  life  of  me  I  could  not  help  laughing. 
This  light-hearted  little  noblewoman  played  at 
high  treason  with  less  seriousness  than  most  men 
played  golf,  certainly  with  less  seriousness  than  the 
Scotsmen  displayed  on  the  Pariserhof  curling  rinks. 

For  the  moment  I  forgot  that  the  King  was  in 
danger,  that  the  fate  of  a  nation  was  trembling  in 
the  balance,  that  the  thin  cord  which  bound  me 
was  biting  painfully  into  my  flesh,  or  rather  I 
half  forgot  these  things  and  laughed,  laughed  reck- 
lessly at  the  reckless  irresponsibility  of  my  charming 
captor. 

She  brightened  visibly  again  at  my  unnatural 
merriment. 


FROST   AND    FRIENDSHIP      235 

"  That's  better,"  she  said ;  "  I  knew  you'd  see  the 
comic  side  of  it  directly.  I'm  awfully  sorry  to 
have  been  so  mean,  but  I  had  to  take  my  share  in 
the  plot,  and  after  all  you're  much  safer  here  than 
in  the  Brun-varad.  Now  that  you're  good  again 
I'll  give  you  a  cigarette." 

And  getting  a  box  from  the  mantelpiece  she 
placed  a  cigarette  between  my  lips  and  then  striking 
a  match  held  it  for  me  to  get  a  light  by. 

"  And  I  suppose,"  I  said,  as  I  puffed  at  the  peace- 
offering,  "  I  suppose  I'm  to  be  kept  here  till  the 
revolution's  accomplished." 

"  You  are  to  be  kept  here  till  four  o'clock,  and 
then  I  shall  release  you." 

"  And  if  I  try  and  escape  ?  " 

"  Then  I  shall  shoot  you,"  and  she  laughingly 
produced  a  small  revolver  from  a  drawer  and  laid 
it  on  the  table  at  her  side. 

"Is  it  loaded  ?  "  I  demanded. 

She  nodded  her  head. 

"  Honour  bright,  and  I'm  a  very  good  shot  too, 
so  be  careful." 

"  You  really  would  shoot  me  ?  "  I  persisted. 

"  Certainly,  if  necessary." 

I  looked  at  her  smiling  face  and  wondered  if  she 
was  capable  of  carrying  out  her  threat.  I  doubted 
it,  but  on  the  other  hand  should  have  been  extremely 
sorry  to  run  the  risk. 

"  I  fancy  I  can  loosen  these  cords  a  bit,"  I  said 
hypocritically.  "  I  think  I  shall  have  a  dash  for 
it  and  chance  your  missing  me." 

A    look    of    anxiety    crept    into   her  eyes,  but 


236      FROST    AND    FRIENDSHIP 

she  laughed  again  with  a  fine  assumption  of  in- 
creduUty. 

"  You  can  never  undo  those  knots  of  Max's," 
she  said,  "  but  if  you  do  I  shall  certainly  shoot 
you — as  a  friend,  through  the  leg," 

"  You  bloodthirsty  httle  wretch ! "  I  cried. 
"  Do  you  know  that  revolver  bullets  hurt  ?  " 

"  That's  what  they're  meant  for." 

I  regarded  her  in  silence  for  a  moment,  smiling 
in  my  own  despite. 

"  By  Gad,"  I  said  at  length,  "  I  believe  you'd 
do  it." 

She  nodded  cheerfully. 

"  You're  only  just  beginning  to  take  me  seriously," 
she  said.  "  I'm  a  very  strenuous  conspirator,  and 
I  can't  allow  my  father's  schemes  and  the 
country's  welfare  to  suffer  from  any  misguided 
leniency  towards  a  foolish  young  foreigner." 

"  Patriotism  thy  name  is  Mathilde  Schattenberg. 
Argument  is  invariably  wasted  upon  a  woman, 
upon  a  patriotic  woman  it  is  worse  than  useless. 
I  accept  the  situation.  Will  you  kindly  take  the 
cigarette  end  out  of  my  mouth  ?  ' 

"  With  pleasure.     May  I  give  you  another  ?  " 

"  Thanks,  no,"  I  repUed.  "  A  cigarette  is  a  poor 
form  of  smoke  when  one  is  denied  the  use  of  one's 
hands.    The  smoke  gets  into  one's  eyes  so." 

"  I  can  get  you  a  cigar  if  you  will." 

"  I  should  be  very  grateful." 

"  There  is  a  box  in  Max's  room,  I  know.  I  wiU 
go  and  get  you  one  ;  I  shan't  be  long." 

The  moment  the  Princess  shut  the  door  behind 


FROST   AND    FRIENDSHIP      237 

her  I  made  desperate  struggles  to  free  myself.  My 
efforts  were  absolutely  fruitless  and  not  unattended 
with  pain.  I  desisted  with  an  oath.  I  was  angry, 
though  less  angry  than  might  have  been  expected, 
for  the  extraordinary  flippancy  of  my  captor  had 
infected  me  to  a  certain  extent  with  a  sense  of 
unreality.  And  yet,  however  ludicrous  might  be  the 
play  of  Weissheim  politics,  it  was  patent  enough 
that  the  King's  life  was  in  high  jeopardy.  I  knew 
enough  about  revolutions  and  the  disposition  of 
the  male  Schattenbergs  to  have  little  faith  in  the 
"  seizing  of  the  Royal  Person  "  theory  put  forward 
by  Max  and  believed  in  so  implicitly  by  his  confiding 
sister.  If,  as  was  highly  probable,  the  Grand  Duke 
and  his  satellites  effected  an  entrance  into  the 
Brun-varad,  it  was  morally  certain  that  King  Karl's 
existence  as  a  sovereign  and  a  man  would  teiminate 
in  bloody  simultaneity.  And  I,  who  for  some 
reason  or  other  had  formed  a  keen  affection  for  the 
twenty-second  Karl,  who  had  in  my  humble  way 
been  able  on  more  than  one  occasion  to  serve  his 
interests,  fretted  and  raged  at  my  close-pent  cap- 
tivity, and  cursed  the  folly  that  had  involved  me  in 
such  galling  impotence. 

Slowly  the  door  of  my  chamber  opened  again 
and  I  hastily  resolved  to  make  one  final,  albeit 
hopeless,  appeal  to  the  Grand  Duke's  all  too  dutiful 
daughter,  to  plead  the  King's  cause  with  her,  to 
endeavour  to  demonstrate  her  father's  selfishness, 
and  the  truest  method  of  serving  her  country's 
interest. 

To  my  utter  astonishment  it  was  no  beautiful 


238      FROST   AND    FRIENDSHIP 

and  splendidly  attired  Princess  that  met  my  ex- 
pectant gaze,  no  black-haired  laughing-eyed  little 
woman  in  a  Parisian  ball  dress  and  a  gleaming 
coronet ;  but  a  small  boy,  a  fair-haired  lad  of 
eight  or  nine  in  a  tiny  suit  of  blue  silk  pyjamas,  a 
look  of  puzzled  wonder  in  his  sleepy  eyes. 

"  Little  Stephan  !  "  I  cried.  "  Why,  what  on 
earth  are  you  doing  here  ?  '* 

He  smiled  as  he  recognised  me. 

"  I  couldn't  sleep,"  he  said,  "  'cos  of  the  band 
pla5dng.  I  thought  I  heard  Mathilde's  voice,  so  I 
came  in  here." 

"  Your  bedroom  is  near  here  ?  " 

"  Yes,  next  door.    Why  !  you're  tied  up  !  " 

This  obvious  fact  had  only  just  dawned  on  his 
half-dozing  senses. 

"  Why's  that  ?  "  he  pursued.  "  Have  you  been 
naughty  ?  " 

I  could  hardly  explain  the  truth  to  him — it  was 
too  humiliating  for  one  thing. 

"  It's  a  game,"  I  replied  mendaciously. 

"  A  game  ?  " 

"  Yes,"  I  said.  "  Your  sister  ties  me  up  in  the 
chair  and  goes  away  for  five  minutes,  and  if  I  can 
free  myself  before  she  comes  back  she  has  to 
give  me  a  box  of  chocolates.  If  on  the  other  hand 
she  finds  me  still  bound  on  her  return  I  have  to  give 
her  the  sweets." 

Stephan  brightened  visibly.  Here  was  some- 
thing he  could  understand. 

"  And  can  you  untie  yourself  ?  "  he  asked  with 
manifest  interest, 


FROST   AND    FRIENDSHIP      239 

"  I  fear  not."  i 

"  Can  I  help  you  ?  " 

"  Can  you  help  me  !  "  I  repeated.  "  It's  a  most 
briUiant  idea,"  and  I  wondered  with  a  sudden  gleam 
of  hope  whether  his  tiny  fingers  could  undo  the 
fiercely  tied  knots  of  his  elder  brother's  tieing. 

With  hope  came  the  burning  dread  of  the  Prin- 
cess's return. 

"  Be  quick  and  try,"  I  said  eagerly. 

"  Will  you  give  me  some  of  the  chocolates  if  I 
do,"  he  asked  with  the  cunning  smile  of  the  juvenile 
bargainer. 

"  Yes,  lots — pounds.  Only  be  quick  or  your 
sister  will  be  back." 

The  small  fingers  worked  vigorously  at  the 
entangled  cord,  but  it  needed  greater  strength  than 
little  Stephan's  to  relax  those  close-pulled  knots. 

"  I  can't  do  it,"  he  said  smiling,  as  if  failure  was 
almost  as  good  a  joke  as  success. 

I   began   to   despair. 

"  Can  you  get  at  my  breast  pocket  ?  "  I  asked 
as  a  fresh  idea  struck  me.     "  Quick,  quick  !  " 

After  a  brief  rummaging  he  managed  to  extract 
the  knife  I  had  slipped  into  my  dress-coat  just 
before  starting  for  the  ball. 

"  A  knife,"  he  said. 

"  Yes,  take  the  sheath  off.  Now  cut  the  cord, 
quickly.  Anywhere,  yes,  that  will  do.  Mind  my 
wrist.  Well  done,  Stephan  !  You're  a  hero  !  You 
shall  have  the  largest  box  of  chocolates  in  Weissheim 
to-morrow  !  " 

"Promise!" 


240      FROST   AND    FRIENDSHIP 

"  I  swear  it,"  I  said.  "  Now  go  to  bed  before 
Mathilda  comes  back  again,  because  she'll  be  very 
angry  when  she  finds  I'm  loose,  and  if  she  discovers 
that  you've  helped  me,  why — "  but  little  Stephan 
had  run  chuckling  from  the  room. 

My  first  act  of  freedom  was  to  secure  the  revolver 
which  the  Princess  had  promised  to  use  in  the  event 
of  my  attempting  to  escape.  It  was  a  small  deli- 
cately made  weapon,  loaded  as  she  had  said,  and  I 
was  about  to  put  it  in  my  pocket,  when  a  fresh  idea 
struck  me.  Opening  the  drawer  from  which  the 
Princess  had  taken  it,  I  found  another  revolver 
therein,  a  big  serviceable  weapon  of  the  ordinary 
army  type,  ready  loaded  in  every  chamber.  This 
I  transferred  hastily  to  my  breast  pocket,  and 
extracting  the  cartridges  from  the  smaller  weapon, 
replaced  it  on  the  table. 

I  looked  at  my  watch  :  it  was  three  o'clock. 
The  Schattenbergs  would  not  start  for  another 
half  hour  and  could  I  but  leave  the  house  in  safety 
I  might  yet  frustrate  their  treasonable  quest. 

I  was  just  contemplating  a  dash  for  liberty  when  I 
heard  the  air  of  La  lettre  de  Manon  being 
whistled  in  the  passage.  The  Princess  was  coming 
back. 

Without  any  very  definite  scheme  of  action,  but 
anxious  lest  the  Princess  should  give  the  alarm  that 
I  was  free,  I  darted  back  to  my  chair  and  throwing 
the  severed  cord  loosely  round  me,  assumed  my 
previous  attitude  of  tightly-pent  rigidity.  Hardly 
had  I  done  so  when  the  Princess  entered. 

"  I  can't  find  Max's  cigars,"  she  began,  "  and 


FROST   AND    FRIENDSHIP       241 

I've  looked  everywhere.  I'm  so  sorry.  Won't 
you  have  another  cigarette  ?  " 

"  I  don't  think  I'll  smoke  any  more,  thank 
you." 

"  You've  only  got  another  hour  to  wait.  I  hope 
the  cord  does  not  hurt  you." 

"  Not  in  the  least,  thank  you." 

"  Of  course,"  she  went  on,  "  it's  an  awful  shame 
treating  you  like  this,  but  duty  is  duty — and  it'll 
be  an  experience  for  you." 

I  laughed — undoubtedly  it  would  be  an  experience 
for  me. 

"  I'm  so  glad  you  treat  it  as  a  joke,"  she  went  on, 
"  I  hoped  you  would." 

"  What  time  do  the  conspirators  start  ?  "  I 
asked. 

"  They've  just  gone,"  she  said.  "  The  guests  left 
earlier  than  they  expected,  and  father  and  Max 
started  five  minutes  ago." 

"  Gone  !  "  I  cried.     "  Then  I  must  free  myself  !  " 

"  Don't  be  foolish.  You  can  never  break  that 
cord — you'll  only  strain  yourself." 

"  Nonsense,"  I  said.  "  I  am  a  second  Sampson — 
there,"  and  with  a  well-feigned  simulation  of  a 
supreme  effort  I  cast  the  loosely  encircling  cord 
from  me  to  the  floor. 

In  a  second  the  Princess  had  covered  me  with 
her  empty  revolver.  Her  eye  was  bright  and 
unflinching,  her  hand  steady  as  a  rock. 

"  Be  careful,  Mr.  Saunders,"  she  said  firmly. 

"  Bah,"  I  laughed.  "  You  would  not  really 
shoot  me." 

Q 


242      FROST   AND    FRIENDSHIP 

"  Upon  my  honour,  I'm  serious.  If  you  make 
the  sHghtest  effort  to  escape,  I  shall  fire." 

"  Nonsense,"  I  said ;  "  you  are  not  so  blood- 
thirsty as  you  pretend.  The  King  is  in  danger,  and 
my  place  is  at  his  side.  Duty  is  duty  ;  you  said  so 
yourself  just  now." 

"  Mr.  Saunders,"  she  cried,  and  there  was  acute 
distress  in  her  voice,  "  I  implore  you  not  to  try  and 
escape.  If  I  have  never  been  serious  in  my  life  I 
am  serious  now.  I  swear  it  on  my  soul.  It  is 
useless  your  trying  to  get  away,  for  if  I  let  you  go, 
you  could  never  reach  the  Brun-varad  before  my 
father  and  brother." 

"  I  can  try." 

"  It  is  impossible  I  tell  you.  They  have  gone  in 
a  sleigh,  and  there  is  not  another  vehicle  to  be 
obtained  for  love  or  money.  Do  not  force  me  to 
extremities  for  nothing." 

I  looked  her  full  in  the  face  smiling  brutally  at 
her  evident  concern. 

*'  Nevertheless  I  am  going,"  I  said  calmly,  and 
walked  still  facing  her  to  the  door. 

The  muzzle  of  her  revolver  followed  me  as  I 
moved  pointing  with  relentless  accuracy  right 
between  my  eyes.  Then  it  was  lowered  to  the 
level  of  my  knee. 

"Stop,"  she  cried  imperatively. 

"  I  shall  not." 

I  waited  expectantly  for  the  impotent  click  of  her 
harmless  weapon.     I  was  mistaken. 

Hurling  the  revolver  into  a  comer  of  the  room  she 
flung  herself   into   a  chair   beside   the   table   and 


FROST   AND    FRIENDSHIP       243 

buried  her  face  in  her  arms,  sobbing  and  weeping  in 
a  paroxysm  of  tears. 

Instantly  I  felt  a  brute.  She  had,  as  she  believed, 
spared  me,  and  I,  who  had  thought  to  have  had  the 
laugh  of  her,  was  smitten  by  a  bitter  pang  of  self- 
reproach.  She  was  a  Schattenberg,  and  I  had 
thought  the  wild  blood  of  her  race,  her  keen  mis- 
taken patriotism,  her  affectionate  loyalty  to  her 
truculent  father  and  reckless  brother  were  more 
than  sufficient  to  overcome  a  woman's  natural 
reluctance  to  wound  a  fellow-creature.  But  I  had 
under-estimated  the  power  of  her  womanliness,  and 
where  I  had  looked  for  farce  found  something 
very  much  akin  to  tragedy — a  woman's  murdered 
self-respect. 

More  moved  than  I  should  have  believed  possible, 
I  did  a  very  presumptuous  and  foolish  thing.  Step- 
ping softly  to  her  side  I  bent  over  her  bowed  head 
and  slightly  touched  the  crown  of  her  dead-black 
locks  with  my  lips,  as  a  brother  might  implant  a 
kiss  on  the  hair  of  a  grieving  sister.  Then  I  left 
her.  Closing  the  door  behind  me  I  swiftly  re- 
traversed  the  dark  corridor,  passed  through  the 
swing  door,  descended  the  stairs  and  ultimately  found 
myself  in  the  hall.  The  great  door  was  shut,  but 
there  were  plenty  of  men  about  clearing  up  and 
putting  things  straight  after  the  gorgeous  entertain- 
ment of  the  evening,  and  I  had  no  difficulty,  after 
finding  my  hat,  coat  and  snowboots,  in  obtaining  an 
egress. 

Outside  the  stars  were  shining  in  the  cloudless 
heavens,  and  a  half  moon  had  turned  the  snow  of 


244      FROST   AND    FRIENDSHIP 

the  Klauigberg  to  polished  silver.  The  great 
courtyard  was  impressively  silent  and  absolutely 
devoid  of  vehicles,  and  the  lamps  of  the  bronze 
statuary  no  longer  illuminated  it.  I  wrapped  my 
coat  closely  round  me  for  the  cold  was  intense. 
Was  it  possible  to  reach  the  Brun-varad  before  the 
Grand  Duke's  sleigh  ?  That  was  the  question  I 
asked  myself  as  I  stood  surveying  the  magic  spectacle 
of  the  winter  night.  I  would  try,  of  course,  but  had 
I  the  slightest  chance  of  success  ?  The  sleigh  had  a 
good  start  of  me,  and  I  could  hardly  travel  over 
the  snow-encumbered  roads  as  rapidly  as  a  horse- 
drawn  vehicle.  I  looked  round  in  something  like 
despair,  and  I  noticed  on  my  left  that  something 
blotted  out  a  long  rectangle  of  the  starry  heavens. 
It  was  the  wooden  crow's  nest,  the  look-out  tower 
of  the  Kastel  run,  and  the  realisation  sent  a  spasm 
of  hope  thrilling  through  me. 

If  I  could  find  a  toboggan  I  could  yet  reach  the 
Brun-varad  by  the  Kastel  run  and  be  there  before 
the  Grand  Duke's  sleigh.  In  an  instant  I  was 
at  the  base  of  the  watch  tower,  and  a  minute  later 
had  burst  in  the  flimsy  door  of  the  toboggan 
store-room.  There  was  an  abundance  of  machines 
to  choose  from,  and  I  hastily  selected  a  "  skeleton  " 
like  my  own,  with  a  sliding  seat.  I  dragged  it 
breathlessly  out  and  set  it  at  the  head  of  the  track, 
and  as  I  did  so,  the  chilling  thought  struck  me  that 
I  had  no  rakes.  I  paused.  I  had  once  asked  the 
Governess,  who  knew  as  much  about  the  Kastel 
run  as  any  living  being,  if  any  one  had  ever  made 
the    descent    of    that    dangerous    course    without 


FROST    AND    FRIENDSHIP       245 

rakes,  and  her  answer  had  been  a  scornful  denial. 
Then,  because  I  felt  fear  steaUng  into  my  soul,  and 
I  knew  that  delay  meant  utter  annihilation  of  my 
courage,  I  hardened  my  heart  and  cast  myself  on 
to  the  borrowed  sledge.  As  I  did  so  I  heard  the 
contact  wire  snap,  cind  I  realised  that  the  timing 
apparatus  had  been  set  for  the  ladies' race  on  the 
following  day.  I  was  off,  and  at  first  I  did  not 
feel  the  need  of  my  rakes,  for  one  usually  devoted 
the  first  few  hundred  yards  of  the  course  to  develop- 
ing speed  as  rapidly  as  possible,  reserving  the  use 
of  the  iron  toe-spikes  for  the  big  comers.  Never- 
theless I  kept  the  toes  of  my  snow-boots  well 
pressed  down  on  the  track,  anxious  above  all  things 
to  offer  every  obstacle  to  a  too  tremendous  and 
uncontrollable  rapidity.  Moreover,  I  did  not  ride 
well  forward  as  in  racing,  but  worked  the  sliding 
seat  back  as  far  as  possible,  and  traveUing  thus  I 
progressed  at  first  at  considerably  less  than  my 
usual  speed.  I  was  in  a  hurry.  Heaven  knows,  but 
if  ever  there  was  a  case  of  more  haste  less  speed 
it  was  on  that  moonUt  rakeless  ride  down  the 
Kastel  toboggan  run. 

Gradually  in  spite  of  my  precautions  the  speed 
increased,  and  as  my  iron  runners  skimmed  down 
the  frictionless  path  and  the  icy  night  air  beat  on 
my  forehead  I  felt  a  tightening  about  my  heart, 
that  was  half  fear,  half  an  awful  exhilaration. 

Swifter  and  swifter  grew  the  speed,  louder  and 
louder  shrieked  the  wind  in  my  deafened  ears. 
The  marvellous  beauty  of  the  night  was  felt  rather 
than  seen,  but  as  I  went  up  the  bank  of  the  first 


246      FROST   AND   FRIENDSHIP 

corner  I  caught  a  momentary  glimpse  of  the  moon- 
ht  snows  of  the  Nonnensee  and  wondered,  almost 
without 'fear,  whether  I  was  not  soon  destined  to 
make  their  close  acquaintance.  I  thought  of  Herr 
Schneider's  almost  blasphemously  expressed  desire 
for  a  death-leap  over  Jonathan,  with  its  swooning 
fall,  merging,  after  an  infinity  of  unending  seconds, 
into  the  annihilation  that  knows  no  waking.  I  had 
attributed  his  utterance  to  the  morbid  excitement 
of  an  unstable  brain,  and  yet,  as  I  sped  at  that 
fearful  velocity  under  the  starlit  heavens,  I  looked 
death  in  the  face  rather  as  a  sporting  opponent  in  a 
game  than  a  dread  enemy  without  chivalry  and 
without  compassion.  I  would  do  all  in  my  power 
to  steer  my  humming  craft  to  a  safe  conclusion,  but 
if,  as  seemed  probable,  I  failed,  well,  I  asked  no 
better  termination  to  my  career  than  that  endless 
plunge  over  the  white  precipice  that  walled  the 
Nonnensee.  The  first  few  bends  I  negotiated 
with  the  ease  of  a  skilled  toboganner ;  down  the 
straight  I  tore,  and  then  in  a  twinkling  David 
gleamed  blue-green  before  me  in  the  moonlight. 
Fiercely  I  pressed  down  the  unarmoured,  ineffectual 
toes  of  my  snow-boots  onto  the  glassy  track, 
fiercely  I  pushed  back  the  moveable  seat  of  my 
toboggan  to  the  utmost  capacity  of  its  slide,  and 
setting  my  teeth,  dashed  at  the  all  famihar  rampart. 
I  took  it  early  in  the  bend,  as  was  right,  but  my 
unchecked  speed  took  me  far  too  high,  far  higher 
than  I  had  ever  been  before,  and  I  felt  that  my 
prospects  of  safely  rounding  David  were  scanty 
in  the  extreme.      In  a  flash  I  was  of!  Jonathan 


FROST    AND    FRIENDSHIP       247 

and  the  crucial  point  of  the  descent  was  upon  me. 
I  forced  myself  back  on  my  machine  to  the  uttermost 
possible  inch,  and  stuck  out  my  legs  to  the  left  as 
far  as  I  could  possibly  stretch  them.  Higher  and 
higher  I  rose  on  that  steep  curving  wall,  half  way 
up,  three  quarters,  higher,  higher,  till  my  outside 
runner  was  within  a  foot  of  the  clear  cut  summit,  and 
I  lugged  at  the  head  of  my  toboggan  with  every 
ounce  of  energy  that  my  muscles  could  command. 
Higher  still  I  rose,  despite  my  frantic  efforts,  till  an 
inch  of  gleaming  ice  alone  stood  between  me  and 
destruction.  With  fascinated  eyes  I  watched  the 
narrow  band  between  my  uppermost  runner  and 
the  sky,  and  so  thin  was  that  saving  rim  of  ice  that 
the  moonlight  shone  through  it  as  clearly  as  through 
a  pane  of  glass.  For  a  fraction  of  a  second  it  seemed 
to  narrow,  and  then,  merciful  heavens!  it  grew  rapidly 
wider  and  wider  again,  and  I  knew,  with  a  singing 
heart,  that  the  almost  impossible  had  been  achieved, 
that  the  Kastel  run  had  been  negotiated  by  a  rakeless 
rider ! 

**  Thank  God  !  "  I  breathed,  for  I  realised  that 
though  there  was  plenty  of  the  run  yet  to  be  tra- 
versed, the  remaining  part  furnished  a  succession 
of  straights  and  easy  curves  quite  without  terrors  for 
the  scientific  tobogganer. 

Suddenly  in  the  midst  of  my  self-congratulations 
a  soimd  broke  through  the  roaring  in  my  ears 
which  had  more  alarm  for  me  than  the  prospect  of 
flying  over  the  summit  of  Jonathan.  I  heard  the 
tinkling  of  a  sleigh  bell,  and  a  second  later  I  saw 
the  lights  of  a  pair-horse  sleigh  advancing  rapidly 


248      FROST   AND    FRIENDSHIP 

through  the  pine  woods  in  the  direction  of  Weissheim. 
If  there  is  one  thing  paralysing  to  the  brain  of  a 
tobogganer  it  is  the  prospect  of  something  crossing 
his  track,  and  in  spite  of  the  great  precautions 
habitually  employed  when  the  Kastel  run  was 
open,  I  never  passed  that  crossing  of  the  Reifinsdorf 
road  without  a  slight  stab  of  anxiety  lest  some 
over-hasty  driver  should  disregard  the  danger 
signal  and  block  my  lightning  course.  And  now 
there  was  no  danger  signal  hoisted,  nor,  had  there 
been,  was  the  Grand  Duke  the  man  to  regard  it, 
under  the  present  circumstances,  for  an  instant. 
Even  had  I  been  wearing  rakes,  I  could  no  more 
have  stopped  my  flight  than  one  can  recall  a  shell 
from  a  fired  cannon,  but  as  it  was,  I  was  powerless 
even  to  check  my  speed  in  the  faintest  degree.  The 
rounding  of  David  had  been  dangerous,  but  there 
some  slight  scope  had  been  offered  to  my  skill,  my 
nerve,  my  physical  strength.  Here  I  was  in  the 
hands  of  fate,  powerless  to  affect  the  issue,  incapable 
even  of  guessing  whether  I  should  pass  in  front  of 
or  behind  the  sleigh,  or  whether — I  know  the  anxiety 
of  those  few  seconds  almost  turned  my  brain. 

Fiercely  the  coachman  whipped  his  galloping 
horses,  and  my  strained  eyes  saw  the  muffled  forms 
of  the  two  Schattenbergs  and  two  red  points  of 
light  which  told  me  they  were  smoking.  Then  I 
shut  my  eyes,  for  it  seemed  that  I  must  dash  right 
into  them,  and  in  that  moment  of  supreme  agony 
I  prayed  that  my  death  might  not  be  altogether 
useless,  that  the  collision  might  so  shatter  and 
disable  the  conspirators  that  the  night's    treason 


FROST   AND    FRIENDSHIP       249 

might  be  utterly  confounded  and  brought  to  naught. 

When  I  opened  my  eyes  again  I  knew  that  I  had 
missed  the  sleigh,  that  it  had  crossed  the  track 
a  fraction  of  a  second  before  me,  that  the  tail  end  of 
its  iron-shod  runners  had  passed  within  a  foot  of  my 
devoted  head.  Half  dazed,  I  swung  round  the  next 
bend — the  Dog's  leg  as  they  call  it — and  a  moment 
later  I  had  passed  the  winning  post  and  was  dashing 
up  the  steep  incline  which  terminates  the  run. 
Mechanically  I  pressed  down  my  toes  on  to  the 
track  again  to  check  my  course,  but  the  speed  with 
which  my  toboggan  leapt  up  the  hill  told  me  the 
futility  of  doing  so.  In  the  ordinary  way  the  sharp 
rise  in  the  course  and  a  vigorous  application  of  one's 
rakes  just  sufficed  to  bring  one's  craft  to  a  stand- 
still at  the  summit  of  Buffer  Hill,  but  I  realized,  with 
a  fresh  accession  of  alarm,  that  the  process  of  de- 
scending the  Kastel  run  without  rakes  had  yet  to 
reach  its  safe  accomplishment. 

Up  the  sharp  straight  hill  I  bounded,  over  the 
low  snow  bank  at  the  end  I  dashed,  flying  into 
space  as  a  stone  that  is  hurled  over  a  precipice. 

What  would  be  my  fate  I  had  not  the  faintest 
idea,  for  the  possibility  of  over-shooting  Buffer  Hill 
had  never  before  entered  into  my  calculations. 

For  an  eternity  I  seemed  skimming  through 
endless  realms  of  icy  air,  then  there  came  a  sudden 
ploughing  through  deep  snow — and  then  cessation. 
Breathless,  shaken,  dazed,  I  lay  motionless,  but 
clinging  still  to  my  faithful  toboggan.  I  had  not 
the  faintest  idea  whether  I  was  fatally,  seriously,  or 
only  slightly  injured,  though  I  feared  the  worst. 


250       FROST   AND:  FRIENDSHIP 

Slowly  I  dragged  myself  to  my  feet  and  looked 
aromid  me.  I  was  in  a  wide  field  of  deep  snow,  and 
there,  full  sixty  paces  from  me,  was  the  miniature 
eminence  of  Buffer  Hill.  I  knew  exactly  where  I 
was  :  I  was  in  the  Palace  garden,  and  to  gain  an 
entrance  to  the  Brun-varad  had  to  wade  through 
many  yards  of  exceedingly  deep  snow.  My  efforts, 
though  of  necessity  slow,  reassured  me  completely 
on  the  subject  of  my  own  xmimpaired  vitality.  My 
breath  was  short,  but  my  hmbs  were  ininjured,  and, 
determined  at  all  costs  to  anticipate  the  conspiring 
Grand  Duke,  I  struggled  manfully  to  the  firm  road 
leading  to  the  Brun-varad.  Once  on  hard  rolled 
snow,  I  ran  as  swiftly  as  my  shortened  breath  would 
permit  as  far  as  the  great  entrance  in  the  Waffen- 
Thurm. 

There  were  sentinels  in  the  charcoal-warmed 
sentry  boxes,  and  as  I  approached  they  looked  at 
each  other  an  instant,  and  then  there  was  an 
ominous  dick,  and  they  stepped  out  to  bar  my 
way. 

"  Good-evening,"  I  said  affably.  "  His  Royal 
Highness  the  Grand  Duke  Fritz  bade  me  tell  you 
that  he  would  be  here  in  five  minutes.  I  am  going 
into  the  Palace,  but  you  must  on  no  account  let 
anyone  else  enter  before  his  Highness's  arrival." 

That  the  men  were  hand  in  glove  with  the  enemy 
was  patent,  but  my  assured  manner  carried  the  day 
as  I  expected,  and  with  a  "  Ck)d  be  with  your 
Excellency,"  they  stepped  back  into  the  friendly 
warmth  of  their  shelters.  '  '^  '^ 

The  great  doorway  yielded  to  my  pressure,  and 


FROST   AND    FRIENDSHIP       251 

taking  one  final  glance  round  before  entering,  I 
listened.  The  faint  sound  of  sleigh  bells  tinkled 
in  my  ears.  In  five  minutes  the  Grand  Duke 
would  be  here. 


CHAPTER   XIX 

MY  first  impulse  on  entering  the  Palace  was 
to  bolt  the  door.  As  I  was  about  to  do 
so  my  eyes  fell  on  a  sleepy,  corpulent  figure,  rising 
perfunctorily  at  my  entrance  from  the  depths  of  a 
comfortable  armchair.  It  was  the  major-domo, 
Bomcke,  whose  duty  it  doubtless  was  to  see  that 
the  last  guest  was  home  before  securing  the  Palace 
for  the  night. 

He  gaped  audibly,  and  was  about  to  shoot  the 
great  bolts  with  which  the  Siegersthor  was  fur- 
nished, when  I  addressed  him. 

"  Herr  Bomcke." 

"  Yes,  Mr.  Saunders." 

"  Where  is  his  Majesty  ?  " 

"  His  Majesty  has  retired." 

"  And  who  is  the  officer  on  guard." 

"  Captain  von  Odenheimer.  He  is  going  his 
rounds." 

"  Herr  Bomcke,"  I  said  severely,  "  are  you  a 
loyal  servant  of  the   King  ?  " 

The  major-domo's  sleepy  countenance  displayed 
considerable  mystification  at  my  question,  but  for 
answer  he  drew  himself  up  to  a  posture  of  superb 
dignity,  and  placed  his  fat  right  hand  on  his  dress- 
waistcoat. 


FROST   AND    FRIENDSHIP       253 

**  Because,"  I  pursued,  '*  I  have  reason  to  believe 
that  an  attempt  will  be  made  to-night  on  the  King's 
person.  The  Grand  Duke  may  be  here  at  any 
moment." 

"  The  Grand  Duke  !  " 

I  never  saw  a  man  so  robbed  of  his  attributes  as 
was  the  major-domo  in  that  revealing  moment  of 
dismayed  astonishment.  His  dignity,  his  pomposity, 
his  presence  were  gone  in  a  twinkling,  and  there  was 
surprisingly  little  left — merely  a  quivering,  spine- 
less, barely  articulate  jelly  of  a  man.  Nevertheless 
his  collapse  proved  that  he,  at  any  rate,  was  not  a 
party  to  the  treachery,  and  I  hesitated  no  longer 
in  giving  him  my  orders. 

"  Bolt  the  door  thoroughly,  Herr  Bomcke," 
I  said,  "  and  then  go  and  warn  Captain  von  Oden- 
heimer  of  the  impending  attack.  He  is  a  capable 
man  and  will  do  everything  in  his  power  to  make 
the  place  secure." 

Then  without  further  delay  I  mounted  the  stairs 
in  the  direction  of  the  King's  bedchamber. 

The  Schattenberg's  motives  in  kidnapping  me 
were  doubly  clear  now.  Not  only  did  they  wish 
to  remove  a  possibly  dangerous  adversary  from  the 
scene  of  their  activities,  but  they  knew  that  until  I 
had  returned  to  the  Palace  the  gate  would  be  left 
unbarred,  or  at  any  rate  that  some  one  would  readily 
open  it  to  an  expected  summons.  Outside  the 
King's  door  I  halted  a  moment  in  some  trepidation. 
Then  I  knocked,  softly — there  was  no  answer. 
Again  I  knocked — more  vigorously  this  time,  and 
almost  immediately  the  door  was  flung  open,  and 


254      FROST    AND    FRIENDSHIP 

for  the  second  time  that  night  I  found  myself  look- 
ing straight  down  the  barrel  of  a  revolver. 

It  was  the  King  who  had  opened  the  door,  and 
his  thick  stiff  hair  was  matted  with  the  disorder 
consequent  on  slumber.  Over  his  sleeping-suit 
he  had  donned  a  flowery  dressing-gown,  and  his 
appearance  was  sufficiently  comic  to  bring  a  smile 
to  my  face.  Nevertheless  there  was  no  answering 
smile  on  the  King's  countenance  as  he  recognised  me, 
neither  did  he  pay  me  the  compliment  of  lowering 
his  revolver. 

"  What  do  you  want  ?  "  he  asked  brusquely. 

'♦  It  is  I,  Saunders." 

"  I  know.    What  do  you  want  ?  " 

"  If  your  Majesty  will  kindly  lower  your  revolver 
I  will  explain." 

He  looked  at  me  doubtfully  for  a  moment  and 
then  did  as  I  had  bid. 

"I  beg  your  pardon,"  he  said;  "  I  am  very  sleepy." 

In  as  few  words  as  possible  I  explained  the  situa- 
tion to  him  and  the  fact  that  the  conspirators  might 
be  there  at  any  moment. 

"  And  you  escaped  from  their  net,  and  tobog- 
ganed here  in  order  to  warn  me  ?  "  he  said. 

"Without  rakes,"  I  added,  with  more  than  a 
touch  of  pride. 

The  King  tossed  back  his  head  with  a  gesture 
which  meant  much.  He  was  wide  enough  awake 
now,  and  though  his  outward  composure  was  re- 
markable, I  read  the  light  of  battle  in  his  brightening 
eyes. 
"  Let  me  think,"  he  said,  passing  his  hand  through 


FROST   AND    FRIENDSHIP      255 

his  matted  locks.  "  You  told  Bomcke  to  fasten 
the  door.  Good  !  Let  us  take  up  our  position  at 
a  window  overlooking  the  Siegers-thor,  and  fire  on 
them  as  they  arrive." 

The  plan  was  simple  and  might  perhaps  have 
been  effective  had  circumstances  permitted  the 
carrying  of  it  out.  As  a  matter  of  fact  the  King's 
scheme  was  barely  formulated  when  the  sound  of 
voices  reached  our  ears  from  below.  The  King 
seized  me  by  the  wrist  and  dragged  me  to  the  head 
of  the  staircase.  Next  he  switched  off  a  light  which 
shone  above  our  heads,  and  together  we  cautiously 
descended  a  half  flight  of  stairs  till  the  hall  came 
within  range  of  our  vision.  Then  we  waited  gazing 
silently  at  the  strange  scene  which  met  our  eyes. 
The  hall  contained  a  group  of  some  half-dozen 
officers  in  full  uniform,  and  in  the  centre  was  the 
Grand  Duke  and  his  son  Max.  The  former  was 
addressing  the  throng  in  deep  low  tcaies,  emphasising 
his  remarks  with  grandiose  flourishings  of  a  drawn 
sword.  Of  his  speech  we  could  catch  but  occasional 
phrases,  but  it  was  evidently  a  species  of  patriotic 
incitement  to  murder,  with  a  high-spirited  eulogy 
of  his  own  House  and  person.  I  wondered  how 
they  had  obtained  entrance,  and  concluded  that  the 
redoubtable  Herr  Bomcke  had  been  too  paralysed 
by  my  alarming  information  to  perform  his  all- 
important  duty  of  bolting  the  Siegersthor.  This 
view  was  borne  out  by  a  glimpse  of  the  major-domo's 
prostrate  body,  propped  limply  against  a  marble 
pedestal  in  a  comer  of  the  apartment,  a  streak  of 
crimson  staining  his  otherwise  colourless  face. 


256      FROST   AND    FRIENDSHIP 

After  a  few  moments  the  Grand  Duke's  oration 
came  to  an  end,  and  a  murmur  of  approval  or  allegi- 
ance came  from  the  surrounding  officers.  It  was 
clear  that,  having  obtained  a  foot-hold  in  the  Palace, 
secrecy  and  silence  were  no  longer  essential  to  their 
scheme. 

"  They  wish  to  lure  me  down  there  and  pot  me," 
whispered  the  King  in  my  ear.  "  Pas  si  bete !  I  am 
going  to  have  one  shot  at  dear  Fritz,  and  then  I  shall 
bolt  for  the  Schweigenkammer.  I  want  you  to 
rouse  Meyer  and  tell  him  to  get  some  loyal  troops 
from  Weissheim." 

"  What  about  Odenheimer  and  his  quarter- 
company  ?  "  I  asked, 

"  If  Odenheimer  and  his  quarter-company  were 
true  to  their  salt  they  would  be  down  there  wiping 
my  cousin's  blood  off  their  bayonets.  No,  there 
are  few  men  in  the  world  I  can  trust,  and  Meyer  is 
one  of  them.    When  I  fire,  run  to  his  bedroom." 

I  watched  my  royal  companion  take  his  deli- 
berate aim  and  then,  as  his  steady  finger  pressed 
back  the  trigger  and  the  clear  report  rang  through 
the  building,  I  turned  and  dashed  up  the  stairs  in 
search  of  the  commander-in-chief.  A  muttered 
"  HoUensgliick "  from  his  Majesty,  who  followed 
close  on  my  heels,  told  me  that  the  shot  had  missed. 
I  glanced  hastily  backwards  and  perceived  that  the 
pack  had  recovered  from  their  surprise  and  were 
pursuing  us  with  murderous  intent.  On  I  dashed, 
and  as  I  gained  the  landing  which  led  to  General 
Meyer's  room  I  heard  the  King  stumble  over  his 
long  dressing-gown   and   sprawl   full   length   along 


FROST   AND   FRIENDSHIP      257 

the  stairs.  In  a  second  I  was  by  his  side  again  and 
had  whipped  out  the  revolver  I  had  taken  from  the 
Marien-kastel.  Our  opponents  were  still  a  full 
flight  below  us,  but  in  that  momentary  halt  I  was 
recognised. 

"  Saunders  !  "  I  heard  Max  cry  with  a  shout  of 
anger  and  astonishment,  and  a  second  later  a  re- 
volver bullet  ripped  up  the  pine  panelling  at  the 
level  of  my  head. 

"  Upwards,"  cried  the  King,  who  had  recovered 
himself  with  surprising  quickness,  and  we  continued 
our  rapid  flight  up  the  easy  steps  of  the  Palace 
stairway.  At  the  next  landing  we  separated,  I 
darting  down  a  corridor  to  the  left  in  the  direction 
of  General  Meyer's  apartments,  the  King  mounting 
a  further  flight  en  route  for  the  Schweigenkammer. 
I  had  traversed  but  half  the  distance  to  the  General's 
rooms  when  it  became  evident  to  me  that  I  was  no 
longer  pursued.  The  reckless  crew  who  had  staked 
their  all  on  the  successful  issue  of  their  plot  had 
wisely  concentrated  their  energies  on  the  main  object 
of  their  desires — the  capture  or  death  of  the  royal 
quarry.  For  the  life  of  me  I  found  it  impossible 
to  carry  out  the  King's  behest  of  rousing  Meyer 
without  first  learning  for  certain  whether  he  had 
reached  in  safety  the  friendly  shelter  of  the  silent 
room.  As  noiselessly  as  possible  I  retraced  my 
steps  down  the  passage,  mounted  the  steps  after 
the  pursuing  throng,  and  then  peered  cautiously 
down  the  corridor  out  of  which  the  Schweigen- 
kammer opened.  A  glance  told  me  that  the  King 
had  won  his  harbour  of  refuge,  for  the  body  of  con- 

R 


258      FROST   AND    FRIENDSHIP 

spirators  were  gathered  outside  making  noisy  and 
desperate  efforts  to  break  through  the  door.  I 
smiled,  for  I  knew  the  thickness  of  that  sound-dead- 
ening portal,  and  realising  that  King  Karl  was  at 
least  temporarily  secure,  I  hastened  to  complete 
my  mission  of  summoning  the  commander-in-chief. 
I  found  his  room  unlocked,  and  without  waiting  for 
an  answer  to  my  knock  I  burst  in.  I  had  expected 
to  find  the  General  in  bed,  but  he  was  sitting  half 
dressed  in  his  armchair,  holding  in  his  hand  a  small 
bunch  of  pinks,  and  gazing  with  an  expression  of 
ludicrous  rapture  at  a  fuU-length  photograph  of 
Mrs.  Van  Troeber  which  adorned  his  dressing  table. 

It  was  several  seconds  before  he  managed  to 
transfer  his  glance  to  myself. 

"  General,"  I  said  hastily,  "  there  is  a  plot  against 
the  King.  The  Grand  Duke  and  Max  are  in  the 
Palace  with  half  a  dozen  other  conspirators,  and 
they  are  besieging  the  King  in  the  Schweigen- 
kammer." 

I  expected  to  see  him  dash  out  of  his  chair  with 
an  oath,  but  he  remained  seated  as  he  was,  his  long 
legs  stretched  luxuriously  before  him,  a  smile  on  his 
inscrutable  face,  a  model  of  contemptuous  impassi- 
vity. 

"  In  the  Schweigenkammer,"  he  repeated  slow- 
ly. "  It  will  take  them  some  time  to  break  through 
that  door." 

"  Doubtless,"  I  said,  irritated  by  his  untimely 
calm.  "  And  we  must  be  thankful  that  we  are 
given  that  time  in  which  to  act.  His  Majesty  bade 
me  tell  you  to  summon  loyal  troops  from  Weissheim." 


''  FROST   AND    FRIENDSHIP       259 

"  Loyal  troops  from  Weissheim  !  Did  his  Majesty 
specify  any  particular  battalion  ?  " 

"  No." 

"  Loyal  troops,  my  dear  Saunders,  are  not  a 
plentiful  commodity  just  at  present,  nor  is  Weissheim 
the  most  favourable  spot  in  which  to  search  for 
them.  If  I  went  round  to  the  barracks  now  I  should 
probably  be  shot.  What  is  von  Odenheimer 
doing  ?  " 

"  He  is  doing  nothing — which  speaks  for  itself." 

"  He  has  not  put  in  an  appearance  ?  "  continued 
General  Meyer.  "  I  am  surprised,"  and  he  shrugged 
his  shoulders  significantly,  fixing  his  gaze  once  more 
on  Mrs.  Van  Troeber's  portrait. 

I  became  aware  that  my  temper  was  rising  vio- 
lently, but  with  an  effort  I  held  myself  in. 

"  General  Meyer,"  I  said  calmly,  "  have  you 
any  suggestion  to  make  with  regard  to  securing 
the  King's  preservation  ?  " 

"Beautiful  creature!"  he  muttered  to  himself, 
still  gazing  at  his  divinity's  presentment. 

"  I  beg  your  pardon,"  he  continued,  turning 
dreamily  to  me.  "  Have  I  any  suggestion  to  make  ? 
Of  course  I  have.  If  you  wish  to  be  by  the  King's 
side  in  the  hour  of  danger,  it  is  possible  to  fulfil 
your  most  creditable  desire.  It  is  necessary  first 
to  mount  the  staircase  to  the  story  above  the 
Schweigenkammer.  Open  the  corridor  window 
and  you  can  climb  on  to  a  small  tiled  roof  of  a 
comparatively  easy  pitch.  If  you  can  manage  to 
crawl  down  this  you  will  find  that  the  right-hand 
comer  of  the  eaves  is  furnished  with  a  rain-water 


26o      FROST    AND   FRIENDSHIP 

pipe,  and  by  means  of  this  a  descent  may  be  made 
to  the  level  of  the  Schweigenkammer  window. 
It  needs  a  little  spring  to  reach  the  sill,  but  the 
masonry  is  rough  hewn,  and  one  can  do  wonders 
if  one's  heart  is  in  one's  work." 

"Good,"  I  said  enthusiastically  ;  "we  will  try 
it." 

"  We  ?  "  echoed  the  General  sarcastically.  "  My 
dear  Saunders,  I  am  neither  a  monkey  nor  a  steeple- 
jack." 

"  No,"  I  retorted  hotly,  "  merely  a  coward  it 
seems."  My  companion  sniffed  his  bunch  of  pinks 
with  an  expression  of  infinite  rapture. 

"  A  coward  and  a  Jew,"  he  said  softly.  "  It  does 
not  need  a  brilliant  intelligence  to  perceive  that." 

"  Man  alive  !  "  I  cried  in  amazement  at  his  self- 
contemning  admission ;  "  haven't  you  the  pluck 
of  a  mouse  ?  " 

Again  he  shrugged  his  shoulders  indolently. 

"  I  detest  violence,"  he  said  simply.  "  And  I 
value  my  skin  at  an  absurdly  high  price.  Before 
I  met  Mrs.  Van  Troeber  I  had  an  exaggerated  detes- 
tation of  facing  death,  and  now,"  he  continued, 
gazing  fondly  again  at  the  photograph,  "I  am 
very  much  in  love  with  life." 

"  A  love  that  breeds  cowardice  is  an  ignoble 
passion,"  I  retorted  contemptuously.  "  Do  you 
know  what  the  King  said  of  you  ?  " 

He  shook  his  head  slowly  with  a  smile  of  indiffer- 
ence. 

"  He  said,"  I  went  on,  "  there  are  few  men  in 
the  world  I  can  trust :  Meyer  is  one  of  them," 


FROST   AND    FRIENDSHIP       261 

In  a  second  my  companion  was  sitting  bolt  upright 
in  his  chair  gazing  at  me  with  piercing  eyes. 

"  He  said  that  ?  " 

"  He  did,"  I  repHed. 

A  moment  later  he  had  sunk  back  again  to  his 
original  position  of  exaggerated  listlessness. 

"  No,  my  good  Saunders,"  he  said  drily,  "  it 
won't  do.  Your  plan  to  rouse  my  ardour  was  well 
meant,  but  a  shade — ingenuous." 

"  In  other  words,"  I  cried  wrathfully,  "  I  am  a 
liar !  " 

"  Will  you  swear  he  used  those  words  ?  " 

"  I  swear  it  as  I  hope  for  salvation." 

"  Swear  it  on  your  honour." 

"  I  swear  it  on  my  honour  !  " 

Slowly  and  deliberately,  as  if  weighing  every 
ounce  of  his  decision,  the  commander-in-chief  of 
the  Grimland  army  rose  from  his  seat.  His  face 
was  calm  and  inscrutable  as  ever,  but  his  right  hand 
which  he  held  out  to  me  was  trembling  with  excite- 
ment or  fear. 

"  Saunders,"  he  said  hoarsely,  "  we  must  save 
the  King.  Worm  your  way  into  the  Schweigen- 
kammer,  and  I  will  do  my  best  to  worm  out  loyalty 
from  Weissheim.  Believe  me,  mine  is  not  the  least 
dangerous  task  of  the  two," 

I  took  his  hand  in  mine  and  looked  him  full  in 
the  eyes.  He  met  my  gaze  with  the  shadow  of  a 
smile  and  then  turned  his  head  away, 

"  I  would  give  untold  gold  for  your  temperament," 
he  said.  "Go,  my  good  friend,  go  and  prosper. 
You  will  need  all  your  excellent  nerve  to  reach  the 


262       FROST   AND    FRIENDSHIP 

Schweigenkammer,  but  the  luck  of  the  square- 
chinned  men  will  be  with  you."  And  as  he  turned 
to  put  on  his  big  military  overcoat  I  left  him. 

Without  a  moment's  delay  I  mounted  the  Palace 
stairs,  and  as  I  reached  the  corridor  leading  to  the 
Schweigenkammer  I  saw  that  the  enemy  were 
still  battering  the  massive  door  with  ineffectual 
violence.  Unperceived  myself,  I  dashed  up  another 
flight  to  the  floor  above,  and  hastened  to  fling  open 
the  casement  of  the  passage  window.  The  half- 
moon  was  giving  ample  light,  and  the  inrush  of 
piercing  air  helped  to  nerve  me  for  my  dangerous 
climb.  I  noticed  with  dismay  that  the  pent-house 
roof  which  it  was  necessary  to  descend  was  far 
steeper  than  I  had  anticipated,  but  I  was  still  wearing 
my  rubber-soled  "  Gouties,"  as  they  facetiously  called 
our  clumsy  looking  snow-boots,  and  I  managed  with 
the  greatest  care  to  creep  down  to  the  edge  of  the 
red-tiled  slope.  Had  not  the  roof  been  cleared  of 
snow  my  task  would  have  been  an  easy  one,though  in 
that  case  I  might  have  had  difficulty  in  distinguishing 
the  real  eaves  from  a  treacherous  snow  cornice.  As 
it  was,  I  lay  at  full  length  on  my  face  and  peered 
over  the  edge  at  the  dizzy  abyss  into  which  a  false 
step  would  land  me.  At  the  extreme  right  was  the 
big  leaden  top  of  a  rainwater  pipe,  and  grasping  the 
lip  firmly  with  both  hands  I  swung  myself  clear. 
For  a  moment  I  hung  wriggling  in  space,  and  then  my 
legs  found  the  metal  stem,  and  I  began  my  cautious 
descent  as  a  sailor  swarms  down  a  rope.  As  soon  as 
my  feet  were  level  with  the  bottom  of  the  Schweigen- 
kammer window  I  halted.     I  could  not  by  stretching 


FROST    AND    FRIENDSHIP       263 

out  my  right  leg  to  the  uttermost  so  much  as  touch 
the  projecting  sill.  I  could  not  possibly  retrace 
my  steps,  while  to  continue  my  descent  was  to  land 
myself  once  more  outside  the  Brun-varad.  As 
General  Meyer  had  said,  the  masonry  was  rough 
and  irregular,  and  squeezing  my  right  foot  between 
two  blocks  of  stone  I  threw  my  body  towards  the 
window,  and  succeeded  in  grasping  the  top  of  the 
green  shutters  which  were  fastened  back  fiat  against 
the  wall.  For  a  full  minute  I  hung  there,  conscious 
that  the  chief  danger  was  past,  but  incapable  of 
taking  the  final  steps  which  would  land  me  in  the 
comparative  security  of  the  Schweigenkammer. 
My  heart  beat  heavily — almost  audibly — and  I  hung 
there  between  heaven  and  earth  in  a  condition  that 
was  mental  blankness  rather  than  acute  fear.  My 
nerve  had  failed  me.  Distasteful  as  is  the  memory, 
humiliating  as  is  the  recital,  I  must  admit  the  truth, 
namely  that  for  the  moment  I  had  ceased  to  be  an 
efficient,  self-controlling  mortal.  What  restored 
my  normal  balance  was  neither  shame  nor  despera- 
tion, still  less,  I  fear,  a  revived  anxiety  for  the  King's 
safety  ;  but  the  purely  selfish  and  not  unreasonable 
dread  that  the  King  would  discover  my  presence 
outside  his  window,  and  taking  me  for  an  enemy, 
empty  his  revolver  into  my  defenceless  body.  The 
idea  acted  on  me  like  a  spur.  Heedless  of  my 
dangerous  position  and  the  paralysing  height  at 
which  I  was  operating,  I  swung  my  body  to  and  fro 
till  I  had  developed  sufficient  impetus,  and  then 
letting  go  with  both  hands,  hurled  myself  against 
the  window.     My  feet  landed  on  the  sill,  one  hand 


264      FROST   AND    FRIENDSHIP 

grasped  frantically  at  the  stone  mullion  of  the  win- 
dow, the  other  bursting  through  a  pane  of  glass, 
clung  torn  and  bleeding  to  a  wooden  sash-bar.  The 
crash  of  breaking  glass  brought  the  King  instantly 
to  the  window.  He  recognised  me  at  once,  and  the 
astonished  expression  of  his  face  is  a  thing  I  can 
remember  with  a  smile  to  this  day.  In  a  second  he 
had  opened  the  casement  and  dragged  me  inside, 
and  to  my  bewilderment  and  dismay  kissed  me 
warmly  on  both  cheeks. 

"  Forgive  me,"  he  said,  smiling  at  my  embarrass- 
ment. "  To-night  my  English  proclivities  are  for- 
gotten.    I  am  a  Grimlander.'* 

Then  he  took  his  handkerchief  from  his  pocket 
and  proceeded,  skilfully  and  almost  tenderly,  to  bind 
up  my  lacerated  hand.  The  traitors  were  thunder- 
ing at  the  door,  but  though  the  massive  oak  shook 
on  its  immense  hinges  there  seemed  little  immediate 
prospect  of  its  yielding  to  their  blows. 

"  Have  you  dispatched  Meyer  to  Weissheim  ?  " 
asked  the  King  at  the  top  of  his  voice  so  as  to  make 
himself  heard  above  the  uproar. 

"  Yes,  sire."     I  shouted  back. 

"  Good  !  I  knew  that  he  at  any  rate  would  not 
fail  me.  I  suppose  it  was  he,  too,  who  told  you  how 
you  could  scramble  down  here." 

"  It  was,  sire." 

"  He  knows  the  Palace  like  his  glove,  this  wise 
old  Jew.  He  will  not  fail,  I  feel  confident,  to  fetch 
us  the  necessary  help  from  Weissheim.  However, 
let  me  tell  you  my  plan  of  campaign  in  case  the 
wolves    break    through    before    succour    arrives. 


FROST    AND    FRIENDSHIP       265 

Briefly  it  is  this.  The  moment  that  the  door  shows 
signs  of  giving  way  we  descend  into  the  chamber 
below  by  means  of  the  Zaubertisch.  It  might  be 
possible  to  escape  that  way  through  the  dark  corridor, 
but  it  is  probable  that  the  Grand  Duke,  who  also 
knows  his  Brun-varad,  has  posted  some  one  there 
to  block  our  egress.  Any  way  the  risk  is  too  great, 
and  we  should  be  safer  in  the  lower  room  than  being 
hunted  about  the  Palace  hke  vermin." 

"  Have  you  secured  the  entrance  to  the 
lower  chamber  ?  "  I  broke  in. 

"  I  have  already  made  a  descent  and  locked  and 
bolted  the  door,  which  is  as  strong  as  this  one.  It 
remains  for  us  now  to  extinguish  our  lights  so  that 
their  inrush,  if  it  takes  place,  will  be  in  confusion." 

My  companion  proceeded  to  switch  off  all  the 
lights  with  the  exception  of  the  one  immediately 
over  our  heads,  and,  mounting  a  chair,  unscrewed 
the  glass  bulbs  one  by  one  and  tossed  them  carelessly 
into  a  corner.  I  followed  his  example,  and  the  noise 
of  exploding  glass  and  the  ceaseless  thunderings 
on  the  door  produced  the  illusion  of  a  heavy  battle- 
field. Conversation  under  the  circumstances  was 
impossible,  and  when  we  had  destroyed  all  the  lamps 
save  one,  the  King  proceeded  cautiously  towards 
the  door  with  a  view  to  examining  its  stability. 
As  he  did  so  the  hammerings  ceased,  and  we  looked 
at  each  other  with  hopeful  eyes,  beheving  that  the 
moment  of  relief  was  at  hand.  A  second  later  a 
loud  explosion  took  place,  a  stream  of  thick  smoke 
issued  from  underneath  the  door,  and  the  lower 
hinge  was  wrenched  violently  from  the  woodwork. 


266      FROST   AND    FRIENDSHIP 

Our  pursuers  finding  the  door  too  stout  to  be  forced 
by  ordinary  violence  had  emptied  the  powder  from 
their  cartridges  and,  setting  a  mine,  had  endeavoured 
to  blow  up  that  most  substanticd  piece  of  joinery. 
In  a  twinkling  the  King  had  scrambled  on  to  the 
circular  table  and  motioned  me  to  follow  him.  I 
did  so  and  together  we  gazed  anxiously  at  the  shaken 
portal.  The  enemy  redoubled  the  violence  of  their 
blows,  and  it  was  patent  that  a  few  moments  more 
and  the  stout  framework  would  no  longer  stand 
between  us  and  our  foes. 

"  We  must  fall  back  on  our  second  line  of  defence," 
said  his  Majesty,  and  so  saying  he  leaned  deliber- 
ately forwards  and  put  his  hand  inside  the  grinning 
boar's  he^ad  over  the  mantelpiece.  Instantly  the 
table  began  to  sink  beneath  us  and  as  it  did  so  the 
king  raised  his  revolver  and  fired  at  the  remaining 
electric  light  over  our  heads.  The  darkness  that 
followed  was  comparative  only,  for  the  moonlight 
streamed  through  the  open  window  and  filled  the 
ancient  chamber  with  a  soft  illusive  half-light  and 
soft  ghostly  shadows.  On  the  other  hand,  the 
nether  chamber  to  which  we  descended  was  totally 
dark  with  the  exception  of  the  Zaubertisch  itself, 
on  to  which  a  silver  radiance  fell  through  the  circular 
aperture  in  the  floor  above.  As  soon  as  we  had 
stepped  safely  on  to  the  floor,  the  King  groped  his 
way  to  the  door,  and  tried  it  to  make  sure  that  it 
was  securely  fastened.  As  he  was  returning  a  crash 
from  above  told  us  that  the  Schweigenkammer 
door  had  at  length  yielded  to  prolonged  violence, 
and  simultaneously  we  heard  the  rush  of  armed 


FFROST   AND    FRIENDSHIP       267 

men,  a  jangling  of  sabres,  a  confused  chorus  of 
oaths  and  cries,  amongst  which  I  distinguished  the 
deep  voices  of  the  two  Schattenbergs. 

"  Where  the  devil  are  they  ?  "  cried  one. 

"  Lights,  lights,"  cried  another,  and  then  to  my 
amazement,  a  black  object  crashed  down  through 
the  ceiling  opening  and  lay  sprawling  and  struggling 
on  the  faintly  moonlit  surface  of  the  Zaubertisch. 

'*  The  Grand  Duke,"  I  cried,  recognising  the  fierce 
features  and  swarthy  beard  of  the  arch-conspirator, 
and  before  I  had  time  to  recover  from  my  surprise 
there  was  a  crack  and  a  flash,  and  the  Grand  Duke's 
scheming  brain  had  ceased  to  dream  of  principalities 
and  powers. 

"  Exit  Schweinhund  der  Grosse,"  said  the  King 
callously, "  Heaven  send  some  of  the  lesser  pig-dogs 
into  our  trap." 

My  spirits  sank  appreciably  at  his  words,  for  I 
realized  that  the  man  whom  I  had  risked  so  much 
to  help,  whose  friend  I  had  proudly  called  myself, 
was  as  fiercely  bloodthirsty,  as  brutal  almost, 
as  the  treacherous  officers  who  were  hungering  for 
our  blood.  As  he  himself  had  said,  to-night  his 
English  proclivities  were  forgotten  and  the  Grim- 
lander  was  predominant.  Possibly  circumstances 
excused  the  undesirable  transformation. 

My  thoughts  were  interrupted  by  another  flash — 
from  above  this  time,  and  I  knew  that  for  the  second 
time  in  my  life  I  had  been  fired  on.  The  fact  that 
the  Zaubertisch  was  lowered  had  now  become 
apparent  to  our  pursuers,  whose  eyes  had  accustomed 
themselves  to  the  stinted  light  of  the  moon-beams, 


268      FROST   AND    FRIENDSHIP 

and  kneeling  down  by  the  edge  of  the  aperture  they 
fired  haphazard  at  us  rapidly  and  in  all  directions. 
The  darkness  which  shrouded  us  was  broken  by 
the  repeated  flashes  of  their  revolvers,  and  our 
position  was  rendered  too  exciting  to  be  pleasant. 
Seizing  me  by  the  shoulder  the  King  dragged  me 
across  the  room,  and  a  moment  later  we  were  stand- 
ing in  security  within  the  deep  recess  of  the  great 
stone  fireplace.  The  satisfaction  of  being  under 
cover  was  considerable,  and  after  a  little  more 
desultory  firing  the  fusillade  ceased.  Believing 
that  our  antagonists  were  about  to  descend  into 
our  chamber  and  attack  us  at  close  quarteis,  we 
both  peered  out  from  our  shelter.  A  lantern — pro- 
cured I  know  not  how  or  where — was  being  lowered 
through  the  hole,  and  holding  the  end  of  the  string 
to  which  it  was  secured,  and  peering  into  the  scantily 
illuminated  depths  of  our  chamber,  was  Max  himself. 
It  was  a  rash  thing  to  do  if  a  characteristic  one, 
and  I  hastened  to  cover  his  lantern-lit  face  with  a 
revolver.  To  have  killed  him  would  have  been  easy, 
but  the  very  easiness  of  the  task  made  it  impossible. 
Changing  my  aim  I  fired  at  the  lantern,  and  with  a 
crash  of  breaking  glass,  the  flame  went  out.  In  the 
darkness  that  followed  I  heard  Max  curse  us  with 
loud  and  sustained  profanity. 

'*  Why  didn't  you  fire  at  the  man  ?  "  asked  the 
King  impatiently.     "  It  was  a  simple  shot." 

"  Too  simple,"  I  retorted  curtly. 

"  Pulver  und  Blei !  "  he  cried  angrily.  "  Can't 
you  try  and  be  a  Grimlander.  This  is  not  sport, 
but  a  matter  of  life  and  death — and  more.    I  would 


FROST   AND   FRIENDSHIP      269 

shoot  my  own  mother  to-night  if  she  were  on  the 
wrong  side." 

I  did  not  answer,  for  I  felt  instinctively  that  argu- 
ment would  be  wasted,  reproof  resented.  I  thought 
of  the  Princess  Mathilde  who  had,  as  far  as  hei 
intentions  were  concerned,  spared  me,  and  I  was 
glad  that  I  had  not  her  brother's  blood  upon  my 
hands. 


CHAPTER   XX 

THERE  are  moments  in  the  lives  of  the  least 
self-conscious  of  us  when  we  are  forced  to 
look  into  ourselves  and  to  ask  whether  our  emotions, 
admittedly  strong,  are  pleasurable  or  the  reverse. 
I  know  that  as  I  stood  in  the  friendly  recess  of  that 
ancient  fireplace,  silently  waiting  in  the  darkness 
for  the  next  movement  of  our  enemies,  I  enquired 
doubtfully  as  to  the  nature  of  my  own  mental 
sensations.  On  the  one  hand  there  was  the  excite- 
ment of  partaking  in  a  remarkable  adventure,  of 
playing  a  fairly  important  part  in  a  drama  of 
European  importance.  On  the  other,  there  was 
the  unpleasant  conviction  that  I  had  interfered 
in  a  wolfish  quarrel  wherein  I  had  no  real  part ; 
while  the  blood  and  suffering  which  were  trivial 
and  everyday  matters  to  my  opponents  and  fellow- 
fighter  were  repugnant  and  chilling  to  a  peacefully 
brought  up  Londoner  like  myself.  The  conclusion 
of  my  introspective  effort  was,  that  I  had  been 
enjoying  myself  famously  till  I  had  begun  to  think, 
and  that  now  I  was  very  much  the  reverse  of  happy. 
Moreover,  it  is  trying  to  the  nerves  to  wait  in  pitchy 
darkness  for  the  schemes  of  a  ruthless  and  blood- 
thirsty enemy  to  develop  at  their  leisure,  and  I  kept 

370 


FROST   AND    FRIENDSHIP       271 

my  eyes  strained  on  the  moonlit  ceiling  gap, 
expecting  every  instant  to  see  the  luminous 
circle  blackened  by  human  forms  leaping  down  to 
join  issue  with  us  in  a  lightless  fray. 

"  Time  is  on  our  side,"  said  the  King  confidently 
in  my  ear. 

"  Time  and  a  Jew,"  I  said.  "  I  hope  Meyer's 
nerve  won't  fail  him." 

"  You  wrong  him  to  suggest  such  a  thing," 
retorted  my  companion.  "  He  owes  his  exalted 
position  entirely  to  my  personal  favour,  and  he 
will  not  fail  me  in  the  hour  of  need.  Hush  !  what's 
that  ?  " 

There  was  a  tread  of  hurried  feet,  and  the  dis- 
quieting silence  maintained  since  the  extinguishing 
of  Max's  lantern  was  broken  with  sudden  violence. 
The  relieving  party  was  at  hand  !  There  was  no 
mistaking  the  meaning  of  those  rousing  revolver 
shots,  the  clashing  of  steel,  the  oaths,  cries,  stum- 
blings and  unmanning  groans.  The  heavy  pounding 
of  feet  shook  the  ceiling  over  our  heads,  dislodging 
the  plaster  from  the  venerable  joists,  and  as  the 
noise  of  the  conflict  swelled  fiercer  and  louder  I 
felt  the  King's  grasp  tighten  on  my  arm. 

"  Our  place  is  up  there,"  he  said  sternly. 

I  disagreed  with  him  totally,  but  had  not  the 
moral  courage  to  say  so. 

To  obtrude  ourselves  into  that  desperate  mel^e 
was  to  court  disaster  alike  from  friend  and  foe. 

"  Mount  the  table,"  said  the  King  imperatively, 
and  in  silence  I  obeyed  him.  A  moment  later  he 
was  by  my  side. 


272      FROST   AND    FRIENDSHIP 

"  Where  is  the  lever  ?  "  he  cried  groping  in  the 
darkness. 

I  had  not  the  faintest  idea,  and  said  so. 

"  Strange,"  he  muttered.  "  I  could  have  sworn 
it  ought  to  be  here." 

"  Where  ?  " 

"  Here,  projecting  from  the  wall  at  the  height  of 
my  head." 

"  Perhaps  a  stray  shot  struck  it,"  I  hazarded. 

My  idea  seemed  plausible  and  an  instant  later 
my  companion  was  on  the  floor  groping  in  search 
of  the  broken  handle. 

A  little  cry  told  me  that  he  had  found  it,  that  my 
thoughtless  guess  had  hit  the  truth.  I  was  re- 
lieved, for  it  meant  that  the  fury-shaken  Schweigen- 
kammer  was  inaccessible  to  us.  It  is  one  thing  to 
join  issue  in  a  fair  fight ;  it  is  quite  another  to 
emerge  slowly  from  the  floor  into  the  centre  of  a 
desperate  conflict,  the  easy  victim  of  the  first  enemy 
who  sets  his  eyes  on  you. 

The  King  took  his  place  again  at  my  side  the 
prey  to  disappointment  and  unconcealed  agitation. 

Gradually  the  sounds  above  our  head  diminished. 
There  came  one  final  pistol  shot ;  then  all  was 
still. 

A  voice  called  down  to  us,  General  Meyer's  voice. 

"  Your  Majesty." 

"  Yes." 

"  The  enemy  are  satisfactorily  accounted  for. 
It  is  quite  safe  to  come  up.  I  have  sent  for  lights." 

"  Thank  you,  Meyer,"  replied  the  King.  "  If  you 
will  kindly  press  the  lever  in  the  boar's  mouth,  we 


FROST   AND    FRIENDSHIP      273 

will  ascend.  The  lower  lever  has  met  with  an 
accident,  otherwise  we  should  not  have  remained 
down  here." 

Slowly  the  Zaubertisch  mounted  again  towards 
its  original  position,  and  if  our  re-appearance  on  the 
scene  bore  any  analogy  to  the  clown's  entry  in 
Pantomime,  the  sight  that  met  our  gaze,  as  our  heads 
emerged  above  the  floor  line,  swept  all  flippant 
imaginings  from  my  brain.  Some  one  had  fetched 
some  candles,  and  by  their  flickering  light  I  saw  that 
the  floor  was  covered  thick  with  dead  and  dying 
men.  Of  our  late  adversaries  not  one  remained 
alive,  and  I  noticed  with  horror  a  fearfully  gashed 
head  that  had  once  been  Max's. 

We  waited  for  the  top  of  the  Zaubertisch  to 
reach  the  level  of  the  floor  before  stepping  off, 
but  when  about  a  foot  below,  it  stopped  abruptly, 
and  fearing  some  breakdown  of  the  machinery  the 
King  and  I  stepped  up  hastily  off  on  to  the  floor  of 
the  Schweigenkammer. 

Looking  down,  I  saw  with  disgust  that  the  leg  of 
the  Grand  Duke's  body,  which  still  lay  on  the  table's 
surface,  was  protruding  over  the  edge  and  causing 
the  unexpected  stoppage  in  our  ascent. 

General  Meyer  saluted  us,  pale  but  smiling,  his 
sword  wet  with  the  blood  of  the  King's  enemies, 
his  cheek  crimson  with  his  own. 

"They  are  all  dead,  sire,"  he  said  simply. 

"  And  our  side  ?  " 

"  Lieutenant  Aufermann  of  the  Guides  is  no  more, 
and  Captain  Traun-Nelidoff,  I  regret  to  say,  is  in 
extremis.    Zuos  is  suffering   from  a  bullet  in  the 

s 


274      FROST   AND    FRIENDSHIP 

thigh,  whilst  I  myself  have  a  trifling  scratch  on  my 
right  cheek." 

"  It  becomes  you  marvellously  well.  Who  else 
has  helped  to-night  ?  " 

"  Schneider  is  here,"  replied  the  General,  and  at 
his  words  the  detective  stepped  forward,  and 
favoured  us  with  a  profound  bow.  He  was  dressed 
in  evening  dress  and  an  old  student's  smoking 
cap,  and  he  held  a  revolver  in  one  hand  and  a  sword 
in  the  other.  "  He  fought  most  valiantly,"  continued 
Meyer.  "He  it  was  who  brought  down  Max  when 
that  excitable  young  gentleman  was  engaged  in  the 
amusing  process  of  slicing  his  Commander-in-chief's 
face." 

"  I  struck  him  from  behind,"  broke  in  the  detec- 
tive hurriedly.  "  I  was  a  good  swordsman  in  my 
youth,  and  my  blow  nearly  clove  his  skull  in  twain." 

"  So  I  see,"  said  the  King  coldly,  a  shadow  of 
disgust  on  his  gloomy  features.  "  Well,  Meyer,  you 
shan't  regret  this  night's  work,  nor  you,  Schneider, 
nor  Zuos  and  the  others.  But  it  is  too  soon  to  talk 
of  rewards  yet.     Where  is  Father  Bernhard  ?  " 

"  I  will  go  and  fetch  him,"  I  said,  for  if  ever 
there  was  work  for  a  priest  it  was  within  the  blood- 
splashed  walls  of  that  stricken  chamber. 

As  I  went  I  wondered  if  the  other  denizens  of  that 
huge  but  scantily  inhabited  palace  had  been  roused 
by  the  prodigious  noise  of  the  night's  conflict. 
That  the  Queen  must  have  known  that  trouble  was 
in  progress  was  certain,  though  with  what  hopes 
and  anxieties  she  awaited  the  issue  it  was  impossible 
to  say. 


FROST   AND    FRIENDSHIP       275 

My  thoughts  wandered  rather  to  Miss  Anchester, 
and  when  I  reflected  that  she  slept  in  the  children's 
wing  right  at  the  other  extremity  of  the  building, 
I  considered  it  quite  likely  that  the  sounds  of  firing 
had  failed  to  break  her  deep  and  healthy  slum- 
bers. 

When  I  reached  Father  Bemhard's  room  I  found 
it  empty.  The  windows,  as  always,  were  wide  open 
and  the  room  bitterly  cold.  The  bed,  though  now 
unoccupied,  had  evidently  been  slept  in.  That  its 
late  occupant  had  been  roused  by  the  hammerings 
on  the  Schweigenkammer  door  was  not  sur- 
prising seeing  that  his  room  also  was  situated  in 
the  Waffenthurm.  The  question  was,  what 
steps  had  he  taken  on  being  roused.  His  loyalty 
was  beyond  doubt  and  his  combative  instincts  more 
than  suspected,  and  I  should  not  have  been  sur- 
prised had  he  been  found  among  our  deliverers 
settling  accounts  with  his  old  enemy.  In  vain  I 
wandered  down  the  passage  calling  him  by  name. 

Retracing  my  steps,  I  looked  in  various  rooms 
where  he  might  possibly  have  been,  but  without 
success.  In  despair  I  descended  into  the  hall,  and 
looking  round,  my  eyes  lighted  on  the  unfortunate 
Herr  Bomcke  still  propped  up  in  his  comer  in  a 
position  of  inanimate  collapse.  I  approached  with 
charitable  intent,  and  as  I  did  so  he  groaned  feebly 
and  regarded  me  with  a  bloodshot  and  unutterable 
gloomy  eye.  He  had  apparently  been  struck 
roughly  on  the  head,  and  his  shirt  front  and  coat 
were  discoloured  and  sticky  from  an  ugly  scalp 
wound.     A  brief  examination  showed  me  that  he 


276      FROST   AND   FRIENDSHIP 

was  no  longer  bleeding  and  that  his  condition  was 
not  such  as  to  cause  anxiety. 

"  The  fierceness  of  man  !  The  fierceness  of  man  !  " 
he  muttered.  "  O  Lord,  is  it  possible  that  such 
things  can  be  ?  " 

"  Cheer  up,  Bomcke,"  I  said,  smiling  at  his  some- 
what incoherent  pathos.  "  His  Majesty  is  quite 
safe." 

"  I  am  glad  to  hear  it,"  he  said  solemnly.  "  I  have 
served  his  Majesty,  as  a  man  of  peace,  five  and 
twenty  years  come  next  Messzeit.  To  think  that  I 
should  live  to  be  struck  on  the  head  by  a  boy  with 
the  butt  of  a  revolver." 

"  Max  did  it  then  ?     Well,  Max  is  dead." 

"  And  his  Royal  Highness,  the  Grand  Duke  ?  " 

"  Is  dead  also." 

"  God  be  thanked.  O  Lord,  thou  art  avenged  by 
thy  servant." 

"  Bomcke,"  I  said  severely,  "  you  are  becoming 
religious,  and  it  does  not  suit  you  at  all.  Talking  of 
religion,  do  you  know  where  Father  Bernhard  is  ?  '* 

He  shook  his  dilapidated  head  and  moaned  a 
negative. 

I  turned  away  to  resume  my  search,  and  there, 
within  ten  paces  of  me  and  enveloped  in  a  long 
black  overcoat,  stood  the  object  of  my  quest. 

He  was  standing  perfectly  motionless  beside  one 
of  the  squat  Doric  pillars  which  support  the  stair- 
case-landing, and  his  habitually  severe  countenance 
was  sterner  than  ever. 

"  What  do  you  want  ?  "  he  asked  brusquely  in 
his  deep  tones. 


FROST   AND    FRIENDSHIP      277 

"  Your  presence  is  required  in  the  Schweigen- 
kammer — immediately,"  I  said. 

"  Why  ?  " 

"  There  has  been  an  attempt  on  the  King's  life — " 

"  I  know,  why  do  they  want  me  ?  " 

"  There  has  been  trouble,  fighting.  Men  have 
been  wounded,  even  to  death,  and  they  need  a 
priest's  offices." 

Father  Bemhard  laughed  gloomily. 

"  Let  them  get  a  priest  then,"  he  said.  "  I  am 
one  no  more.  It  is  no  longer  Father  Bemhard  who 
speaks  with  you,  but  Bernhard  the  apostate.  Do  I 
make  myself  clear  ?  " 

"Not  in  the  least." 

"  Listen  then.  I  was  roused  from  my  sleep  by 
furious  hangings  and  the  sounds  of  excited  voices. 
I  robed  myself  hastily  and  descended  the  stairs,  and 
passing  the  corridor  which  leads  to  the  Schweigen- 
kammer,  I  saw  the  Grand  Duke,  his  son,  and  others, 
trying  to  break  down  the  door.  The  true  condition 
of  affairs  was  at  once  manifest  to  me,  and  as  I  went 
in  search  of  arms  and  assistance  I  thanked  my  God, 
for  I  thought  it  possible  I  might  be  killed,  that  I 
might  die  fighting  for  my  King  and  honour,  and  be 
delivered  from  the  powers  of  the  Evil  One.  Un- 
fortunately, Abaddon  was  in  the  ascendant,  Abaddon 
and  his  trusty  attendant  Aschmedai.  I  went  to 
find  loyal  men  and  I  found,  God  help  me,  I  found 
a  disloyal  woman." 

"  The  Queen  !  " 

He  bowed  assent. 

"  Well  ?  "    I  said. 


278      FROST   AND    FRIENDSHIP 

"  Must  I  go  on  ?  Must  I  humiliate  myself 
utterly.  She  bade  me  let  events  take  their  course, 
she  told  me  not  to  interfere  with  a  quarrel  which 
God  would  decide  in  the  best  way.  To  my  shame 
I  obeyed  her.  Together,  hand  in  hand,  we  awaited 
the  issue  of  the  conflict,  and  when  we  learned  that 
the  King  was  rescued  we  determined  to  take  the 
only  course  open  to  traitors — flight." 

In  spite  of  the  terrible  emotion  which  dominated 
the  self -condemned  priest  there  was  a  stem  tran- 
quillity in  his  demeanour  which  argued  a  finality  of 
resolve  which  I  should  assail  in  vain. 

For  some  reason  his  lapse  angered  me. 

"Father  Bernhard,"I  said,  as  calmly  as  I  could, 
*''^you're  a  damned  fool." 

"  Aye,"  he  said,  "  you  could  not  speak  truer 
words.     A  fool  damned  and  irredeemable." 

"  I  wasn't  thinking  of  your  soul,"  I  said  irritably. 
"  I'm  sick  of  souls.  The  Queen  thinks  she  has  a 
soul,  whereas  she  is  little  better  than — " 

jBut  Father  Bernhard  was  holding  up  a  warning 
hand,  and  a  second  later  the  object  of  my  smothered 
rebuke  was  also  standing  before  me.  Doubtless 
she  had  been  accompanying  her  guilty  lover  when 
I  chanced  upon  the  scene,  and  in  a  rare  moment  of 
shame  had  concealed  herself  behind  the  priest's 
tall  form  and  the  thick  stem  of  the  Doric  column. 

Her  face  was  extraordinarily  pale  and  her  eye 
blazed  with  anger  and  excitement. 

"  Kill  him,"  she  said  breathlessly,  pointing  to  me. 

"  I  shall  not  harm  him  unless  he  tries  to  stop  us," 
replied  the  priest. 


FROST   AND    FRIENDSHIP       279 

"  Stop  you  ?  "  I  repeated. 

"  Yes,"  cried  the  Queen  excitedly.  "  We  are 
leaving  this  wretched  snow-bound  country,  this 
mouldering  palace,  this  icy  land  of  tyranny  and 
unbelief.  Do  you  think  it  would  be  safe  for  me 
here  with  my  frenzied  husband  when  he  discovers 
that  it  was  I  who  drugged  Odenheimer  and  the 
guard.  I  hear  that  not  a  man  of  the  conspirators  is 
left  alive.  Do  you  think  that  he  would  spare  me, 
who  loathe  him  and  have  schemed  him  against,  aye, 
and  will  scheme  against  him  till  my  last  breath." 

"  His  Majesty  would  not  raise  his  hand  against  a 
woman,"  I  protested.     **  Still  less  against  his  wife." 

She  laughed  hysterically. 

"  He  would  shoot  me  where  I  stood,"  she  cried, 
"  or  rather  he  would  confine  me  in  the  shaft  of  the 
Zaubertisch  to  let  me  perish  of  starvation." 

"  Nonsense,"  I  said  soothingly,  for  I  felt  it  was 
my  duty  to  strive  to  avert  a  domestic  tragedy. 
"  The  King  is  neither  a  butcher  nor  a  maniac.  My 
influence  with  him  is  strong  just  now,  for  I  have 
been  of  great  service  to  him,  and  if  you  remain  I 
will  guarantee  that  no  violence  is  offered  you." 

It  was  the  priest  who  replied. 

"  The  die  is  cast,"  he  said  solemnly.  "  I  have  so 
sinned  in  thought  and  word  that  to  sin  in  deed  is 
hardly  to  darken  the  pitchy  blackness  of  my  soul." 

"  Souls  again  !  "  I  cried  angrily,  "  and  what  about 
her  Majesty's  soul  ?  " 

"  My  soul  is  white  before  God,"^said  the  Queen 
fervently,  raising  a  plump  arm  heavenwards.  *'  I 
am  not  acting  rashly  nor  without  much  consideration 


28o      FROST    AND    FRIENDSHIP 

and  prayerful  thought.  Iknow  now  that  to  remain 
longer  with  a  blood-guilty  atheist  would  be  the 
true  sin." 

"  Whilst  elopement  with  a  renegade  priest  would 
be  a  true  virtue  ?  " 

Her  eyes  blazed  hatred  at  me. 

"  Brutal  Englishman,"  she  cried  spittingly,  "  like 
all  your  countrymen  you  have  the  spirit  of  a  pig. 
Know  this,  that  God  can  forgive  all  things,  purify 
all  things,  and  that  his  mightiest  instrument  is 
love." 

I  turned  away  in  despair.  If  it  was  futile  to  argue 
with  a  patriotic  woman,  to  do  so  with  a  religionary 
pervert  was  a  still  greater  waste  of  breath.  As- 
suredly fate  had  never  thrown  a  stranger,  worse 
assorted  couple  together  than  that  faithless  priest 
and  faithless  wife.  The  former  thought  the  devil 
ministered  personally  to  his  pleasures,  the  latter 
that  her  Creator  did  so. 

"  May  I  ask  where  you  propose  going  ?  "  I 
enquired,  more  to  gain  time  than  from  a  desire  for 
information. 

"  The  Grand  Duke's  sleigh  is  still  standing  at  the 
door,"  said  Father  Bernhard.  "  It  will  take  us  as 
far  as  Kurdeburg  where  we  take  the  early  train  to 
Vienna.  It  is  useless  trying  to  pursue  us,  for  our 
horses  are  fleet  and  at  the  Grand  Duke's  orders  the 
telegraph  wires  have  been  cut  in  all  directions." 

"  Useless  if  you  once  leave  the  Brun-varad." 

"  You  will  not  prevent  us  doing  that,"  said  the 
priest  sternly,  producing  a  revolver.  "  That  is  the 
Queen's  present  to  me,  my  wedding  present,  and  if 


FROST   AND    FRIENDSHIP       281 

I  do  not  wish  to  kill  you  with  it,  it  is  because  I 
like  you  personally,  not  because  murder  is  a  sin.*' 

"  I  too  have  a  present,  though  not  I  fear  a  wedding 
one,"  I  said,  tapping  my  breast  pocket  where  the 
Schattenberg's  revolver  lay,  "  but  I  have  seen  too 
much  blood  spilt  to-night  to  wish  to  see  the  colour 
of  it  again.  Go,  if  you  must  go,  and  may  your 
good  friends  Abaddon  and  Aschmedai  give  you  some 
compensation  for  the  death-pangs  of  your  soul. 
Who  knows  that  when  they  have  done  with  you,  the 
good  angels  of  Common  Sense  and  Honest  Work  may 
not  turn  you  once  again  into  a  normal  healthy- 
minded  mortal." 

He  passed  his  hand  across  his  brow  and  regarded 
me  with  a  strained  look  that  had  little  comprehen- 
sion in  it. 

"  Don't  talk  hke  that,"  he  said,  "  or  you  will 
convert  me.  I  don't  want  to  be  converted.  I  can 
face  the  prospect  of  hell,  but  not  the  agony  of 
retracing  my  downward  steps.  Come,  your  Majesty, 
let  us  depart." 

I  stepped  aside  and  bowed,  keeping  my  eyes  on 
the  Queen's  pale  face.  She  looked  fixedly  at  me 
with  an  intensity  of  expression  which  I  was  incapable 
of  analysing,  and  then  favoured  me  with  a  scarcely 
perceptible  inclination  of  her  head.  Then,  as  she 
neared  the  door  leaning  on  her  companion's  arm, 
she  looked  back,  something  fluttered  to  the  floor — 
a  carnation  ! 

I  heard  a  muttered  "  Gedachtniss,"  and  the  door 
closed  behind  them.  There  was  a  jingling  of  sleigh 
bells,  and  the  wretched  creature  and  her  devil- 


282       FROST    AND    FRIENDSHIP 

ridden  paramour  were  off  on  their  wild  night's 
drive  to  shame  and  ignominy. 

I  picked  up  her  worthless  token,  and  advancing 
to  the  open  fireplace  wherein  a  dying  fire  still  feebly 
burned,  thrust  it  into  the  heart  of  the  glowing 
embers.  Then  I  hastened  to  mount  the  stairs  again 
to  inform  his  Majesty  of  this  latest  happening  to 
his  fortunes. 

^   As   I   enteredYthe^  Schweigenkammer  the  King 
anticipated   my!^  ^speech. 

"  You  are  too  late,  Saunders,  the  gallant  Traun- 
Nelidoff  is  no  more." 

"  May  I  have  a  word  with  you  alone,  in  private, 
sire?" 

"Cerrtainly,  only  it  shall  not  be  in  the  Schweigen- 
kammer. Meyer,  I  leave  you  in  command.  Do 
all  that  is  necessary,  and  remember  that  the  Brun- 
varad  is  under  martial  law.  Gentlemen,  I  wish  you 
good-night." 

Putting  his  hand  on  my  shoulder  the  King  led 
me  from  the  room. 

"  You  could  not  find  Father  Bemhard  ?  "  he 
asked. 

"  I  found  him  and  the  Queen,"  I  replied.  "  They 
are  now  in  the  Grand  Duke's  sleigh  en  route  for 
Kurdeburg." 

"  Fled  ?  " 

"  Eloped  !  There  is  passion  on  the  one  side,  and 
something  rather  lower  on  the  other.  Do  you  know 
that  her  Majesty  caused  von  Odenheimer  and  his 
men  to  be  drugged  ?  " 

"  Meyer  told  me  they  had  been  drugged,  and  I 


FROST    AND    FRIENDSHIP       283 

suspected  whose  handiwork  it  was.  Anyway,  she 
is  gone,  that  is  the  main  thing.  My  luck  has  turned 
with  a  vengeance." 

"  You  are  glad  ?  " 

"  I  am  in  Heaven.  As  a  bachelor  you  cannot 
appreciate  my  sensations  of  relief.  Come  into  my 
study  and  we  will  drink  to  their  bon-voyage." 


CHAPTER   XXI 

"    A  RE  you  going  to  bed  to-night  ?  "  asked  the 

jlX  King,  as  I  seated  myself  in  one  of  his 
comfortable  armchairs  and  watched  him  mix  me  a 
powerful  whisky  and  soda. 

I  consulted  my  watch.  It  was  ten  minutes  past 
six. 

"  I  think  so,"  I  replied.  "  There  is  the  Caledonian 
Medal  to  be  played  for." 

His  Majesty  laughed. 

"  How  our  rivals  of  the  curling  rink  would 
rejoice  to  know  of  our  nerve  shattering  experiences 
to-night.  I  guarantee  Colonel  Stuart  and  the 
keener  Scotchmen  were  all  in  bed  by  ten.  Have  a 
cigar  ?  " 

"  Thanks.  Personally  I  regard  over-training  as 
a  great  danger.  Give  me  two  hours'  sleep  and  a 
good  breakfast  and  I  am  ready  for  as  hard  a  day's 
sport  as  Weissheim  can  offer  me." 

"  Bravo !  There  speaks  the  Englishman.  By 
the  way,  Saunders,  what  reward  would  you  like 
for  this  evening's  work.  I  am  not  going  to  try  and 
thank  you,  that  is  beyond  my  powers.  Would 
you  like  to  be  a  baron  ?  " 

I   shook   my   head. 


FROST   AND    FRIENDSHIP      285 

"  I  am  a  linen-draper  and  an  Englishman,"  I 
replied,  "  and  my  friends  of  the  Portland  Club 
have  a  keen  sense  of  humour." 

"  Why  not  live  out  here.  I  assure  you  this 
night's  work  has  settled  our  dynastic  troubles  for 
many  a  long  day." 

"  It  is  impossible,  sire.  I  have  my  business  in 
London  to  think  of." 

"  I  thought  that  was  the  last  thing  you  ever 
thought  of." 

"  To-night  my  eyes  have  been  opened  to  the  reali- 
ties of  life.  I  appreciate  the  true  inwardness  of 
the  phrase  '  cumbering  the  ground.'  " 

"  I  am  sorry,"  said  my  companion  thoughtfully, 
"for  I  love  you  like  a  brother,  far  more  than  most 
brothers  love  each  other.  You  must  come  out  here 
regularly  every  year  It  will  be  good  for  your  health 
and  for  my  peace  of  mind.  Also  I  insist  on  giving 
you  some  memento  of  this  evening's  work.  Money 
you  do  not  need,  but  we  have  a  gew-gaw  called  the 
order  of  the  Black  Ostrich.  Princes  of  the  blood 
and  members  of  reigning  houses  are  alone  eligible 
for  the  first-class,  but  I  should  like  to  present  you 
with  the  second-class,  set  in  brilliants,  if  I  may." 

"  I  should  value  it  enormously,  sire,  as  a  token 
of  your  personal  friendship." 

"  Excellent ;  that  is  settled  then.  Meyer  must 
have  a  barony,  Schneider  a  thousand  pounds  and 
a  tie-pin,  Zuos  and  the  others  third-class  Black 
Ostriches  and  promotion.  Saunders,  have  you  ever 
been  in  love  ?  " 

"If  it  wasn't  so  late,  sire,  I  should  blush." 


286      FROST   AND    FRIENDSHIP 

"  You  have  then,  eh  ?  Good.  So  have  I,  and 
the  person  I  was  in  love  with  was  the  Princess 
Charlotte  von  und  zu  Kreide-Hiigelstadt.  Unfor- 
tunately, I  married  her,  and  as  Queen  and  Consort 
I  found  her  infinitely  less  attractive  than  the  high- 
spirited,  somewhat  flighty  Princess  I  had  fixed  my 
youthful  fancies  on.  The  fierce  light  that  beats  upon 
a  throne  seemed  to  blight  all  her  better  qualities 
and  force  to  an  unnatural  growth  the  meaner 
characteristics  of  her  nature.  Love  of  display, 
vanity,  desire  for  popularity,  extravagance,  these 
were  a  few  of  the  lesser  evils  that  I  saw,  with  dismay, 
swelling  and  growing  with  alarming  aggrandize- 
ment. Then  she  began  to  develop  a  temper,  and 
I  groaned,  for  if  irritability  in  man  is  an  unbearable 
fault,  in  woman  it  is  a  damning  one.  Still,  I 
ground  my  teeth  and  bore  it,  bore  it  like  a  most 
Christian  King,  for  I  had  chosen  her  out  as  my 
wife,  and,  as  far  as  in  me  lay,  I  was  determined  that 
the  compact  should  be  loyally  maintained.  Then 
finally  she  began  to  develop  a  soul.  That  was  fatal. 
A  woman  with  a  soul  is  a  mad  cat  and  a  parrot  rolled 
into  one,  and  I  learned  that  marriage  ties  may  be 
more  burdensome  than  a  convict's  chains.  On  the 
whole  I  supported  my  martyrdom  fairly  well.  She 
discovered  I  was  unorthodox  in  my  views,  and 
breathed  hell  fire  on  me  in  the  grey  hours  of  the 
early  morning.  I  tried  flippancy  as  a  retaliatory 
force,  but  my  wife's  soul  left  no  room  for  any  sense 
of  humour.  She  began  to  loathe  me  with  the 
loathing  of  a  religious  fanatic,  and,  as  is  inevitable 
in  such  cases,  she  began  to  look  for  spiritual  consola- 


FROST   AND   FRIENDSHIP      287 

tion  elsewhere.  The  Archbishop  of  Weidenbruck, 
who  is  as  time-serving  an  old  scoundrel  as  ever 
donned  a  cassock,  encouraged  her  in  her  antagonistic 
attitude  towards  me,  and  she  threw  herself  figura- 
tively, and,  for  all  I  know  or  care,  literally,  into 
the  arms  of  the  Grand  Duke.  She  played  at  treason, 
and  though  fear  for  her  over-massaged  skin  kept 
her  long  from  crossing  the  Rubicon,  she  dallied  with 
the  alluring  game  till  its  fascinations  ultimately 
mastered  her.  You  know  her  character  nearly  as 
well  as  I  do,  and  if  you  are  a  wise  man  you  will 
blame  her  as  little  as  I  do.  A  hypertrophied  super- 
sensitive soul  is  a  disease,  and  has  driven  more 
women  to  deadly  sin  than  want,  luxury  or  ennui." 

"  Heaven  help  poor  old  Father  Bemhard,"  I 
yawned.  "  If  your  Majesty  will  excuse  me,  I  will 
go  to  bed.  I  want  a  clear  eye  and  a  steady  hand 
for  the  Medal  competition." 

"  Good-night  then.  Schlafen  Sie  gut.  Person- 
ally I  remain  awake  for  the  rest  of  the  night,  for  I 
have  many  things  to  think  of." 

Bidding  his  Majesty  good-night,  I  sought  my 
room,  and  casting  off  my  clothes  and  extinguishing 
the  light  I  jumped  into  bed,  wondering  if  I  had 
ever  felt  less  predisposed  for  slumber  in  my  life. 
Then  the  events  of  the  day  blended  into  a  strange 
impossible  medley,  wherein  Grand  Dukes  and  tobog- 
gans, fascinating  princesses  and  magic  tables,  moved 
inconsequently  in  a  halo  of  revolvers  to  the  strains 
of  La  lettre  de  Manon.  I  was  awakened  at]  9.30 
by  the  King,  who  was  attired  in  a  suit  of  pyjamas 
and  his  flowery  dressing  gown. 


288      FROST   AND    FRIENDSHIP 

"  I've  just  had  a  bath,"  he  began.  "  Slept 
well  ?  " 

"  Like  a  church,  sire.  Is  there  any  fresh 
news  ?  " 

"None, except  that  I  have  just  made  Meyer  a 
Baron.  He  is  as  happy  as  a  school  boy  ;  I  fancy 
he  is  thinking  of  a  certain  American  widow  who 
was  intended  by  nature  to  bear  a  title  as  well  as 
the  treasures  of  Golconda.  We  are  putting  Weissheim 
under  martial  law,  and  the  people  will  rather  like 
it.  If  they  cannot  have  a  revolution  they  will  have 
the  next  best  thing.  We  shall  publish  shortly 
our  official  account  of  the  night's  tragedy,  and  when 
the  populace  learn  that  it  was  my  hand  which 
despatched  the  Grand  Duke,  their  goodwill  towards 
me  will  increase  by  leaps  and  bounds." 

"  I  thought  the  Grand  Duke  was  popular,"  I 
objected. 

"  So  he  was.  But  the  Grimlander  is  romantic, 
and  the  fact  that  I  have  shed  blood  will  be  counted 
unto  me  for  righteousness.  Henceforth  my  position 
will  be  an  easy  and  comparatively  safe  one." 

"  I  am  rejoiced  to  hear  it,"  I  said,  getting  out  of 
bed  and  looking  out  of  the  window.  The  sun  was 
still  behind  the  Klauigberg  and  the  sky  was  of  the 
pale  blue  which  heralded  another  perfect  day. 

"  How  about  the  children  ?  "  I  pursued.  "  Were 
they  disturbed  ?  " 

"No,  they  slept  the  sleep  of  the  innocent.  So 
did  the  Fraiilein  von  Helder  and  Miss  Anchester. 
Now  hurry  up,  my  dear  fellow,  and  get  dressed, 
for  the  Medal  play  begins  at  10.30." 


FROST    AND    FRIENDSHIP       289 

"  Do  you  feel  like  running  up  a  good  score,  sire  ?  " 
I  inquired,  casting  off  the  warm  duvet. 

"  I  shall  not  compete.  I  have  a  busy  morning 
before  me.  By  the  way,  I  would  rather  you  did  not 
mention  the  events  of  last  night  to  anybody." 

"  Naturally,    sire." 

"  Well,  I  must  go  and  dress.  Good  luck  attend 
you  on  the  curling  rink  ! " 

I  hastened  to  perform  my  toilet,  and  attacked 
my  usual  breakfast  of  boiled  eggs  and  honey  with 
an  even  better  appetite  than  usual.  As  the  church 
clock  struck  the  half  hour,  I  presented  myself  at 
the  Pariserhof  curling  rink.  The  attendance  was 
good,  the  only  conspicuous  absentee  being  his 
Majesty,  who  sent  a  message  through  me  that  impor- 
tant business  prevented  him  from  taking  part  in  the 
competition.  Rumours  that  there  had  been  trou- 
bles of  a  political  nature  were  prevalent  on  the  ice, 
but  there  was  nothing  unusual  in  that,  and  in  the 
strenuous  atmosphere  of  the  competition  they  were 
soon  forgotten. 

Modesty  and  a  respect  for  my  reader's  patience 
forbids  my  going  into  details  of  that  morning's  play. 
Let  it  suffice  that  I  could  do  nothing  wrong,  that 
fortune  so  favoured  me  that  I  grew  tired  of  her 
unfailing  blandishments,  and  at  the  luncheon  interval 
I  had  amassed  such  a  score  that  my  ultimate  victory 
was  regarded  by  every  one  as  a  moral  certainty. 
As  I  turned  my  steps  towards  the  Palace,  where 
lunch  awaited  me,  I  saw  Miss  Anchester  and  her 
Royal  charges  preceding  me  in  the  same  direction. 
They  had  evidently  been  amongst  the  numerous 

T 


290      FROST   AND    FRIENDSHIP 

onlookers,  and  I  rejoiced  to  think  that  my  remark- 
able accuracy  had  been  watched  by  so  critical  a 
spectator  as  the  Governess.  Not  without  a  desire 
for  her  congratulations  I  hastened  to  overtake  her. 

"  Good-morning,"  she  said,  in  answer  to  my 
salutions,  "  have  you  noticed  the  Fish  ?  " 

"The   Fish?" 

*'  The  white  cloud  that "  hangs  about  the  base  of 
the  Klauigberg.  It  is  creeping  up  the  valley.  We 
shall  have  bad  weather." 

I  was  annoyed,  for  I  had  anticipated  congratula- 
tions, not  a  disquisition  on  the  weather. 

"  I  do  not  mind  the  least,"  I  answered.  "  The 
principal  sporting  events  of  the  season  are  over — 
or  as  good  as  over — and  I  return  to  England  next 
week." 

"You  are  selfish." 

"  For  returning  to  England  ?  " 

"  Good  gracious,  no.  For  not  minding  what  the 
weather  is  like  when  you  are  gone." 

"  The  dry  air  of  Weissheim  is  conducive  to  cold- 
heartedness,"  I  replied.  "  By  the  way,  did  you  see 
me   curl   this   morning  ?  " 

"  We  did.  You  ought  to  win  the  Medal  if  you 
keep   your   head." 

"  I  have  not  the  slightest  intention  of  losing  it." 

"  The  Medal  or  your  head  ?  " 

"  I  shall  lose  neither." 

"  Your  self-confidence  is  touching." 

"  The  small  amount  of  confidence  deposited  in 
me  by  others  is  more  than  touching." 

Miss  Anchester  laughed. 


FROST   AND    FRIENDSHIP       291 

"  You  think  we  ought  to  back  you  more  enthu- 
siastically ?  " 

"I  do." 

"  Why  ?  " 

I  shrugged  my  shoulders. 

"  We  are  all  from  the  Brun-varad,"  I  said. 

"  You  are  a  guest  of  his  Majesty,  I  a  paid  depen- 
dant." 

"  The  distinction  lacks  point"  I  said,  irritably, 
and  for  some  moments  we  walked  on  in  silence.  As 
we  neared  the  Palace  the  Governess  broke  it. 

"  I  should  not  have  said  what  I  did  about  being 
a  paid  dependant,"  she  said,  "  it  was  an  example 
of  a  very  rare  thing — female  snobbishness.  But 
I  was  angry  with  you.     Do  you  know  why  ?  " 

"  I  cannot  imagine." 

"  I  will  tell  you  later.  In  the  meantime  make  a 
good  lunch  and  keep  your  nerves  steady  for  this 
afternoon's  play.  Our  good  wishes  will  be  with 
you." 

Wondering  vaguely  at  her  cryptic  utterances, 
and  concluding  that  I  must  have  in  some  way  con- 
trived to  offend  her  at  the  Schattenberg's  ball,  I 
proceeded  to  carry  out  her  excellent  advice  on  the 
subject  of  maintaining  nerve  tone. 

We  sat  down  four  to  lunch,  the  King,  Baron  Meyer, 
Schneider  and  myself,  and  I  was  rather  hurt  that 
no  one  made  any  inquiries  as  to  my  performance  on 
the  curling  rink.  Very  little  indeed  was  said  at 
all,  but  I  gathered  that  Weissheim  had  been  put 
under  martial  law,  that  the  town  was  full  of  wild 
rumours  which  would  shortly  be  set  at  rest  by  a 


292      FROST    AND    FRIENDSHIP 

royal  proclamation  giving  a  true  account  of  the 
unsuccessful  attempt  on  the  King's  person  ;  further, 
that  the  general  situation,  though  not  devoid  of  ten- 
sion and  anxiety,  was  on  the  whole  as  satisfactory 
as  could  be  expected,  and  gave  promise  of  a  calmer 
and  more  settled  state  of  feeling. 

So  much  I  gathered  by  piecing  together  the  brief 
disjointed  remarks  which  my  companions  threw 
out  from  time  to  time  to  each  other,  and  from  the 
air  of  strenuous  but  fairly  cheerful  pre-occupation 
which  they  all  wore.  My  presence  indeed  was 
ignored  almost  to  the  point  of  rudeness,  and  had 
not  my  common  sense  told  me  that  these  three  had 
been  busying  themselves  on  matters  of  considerably 
more  importance  than  curling,  and  that  time  was 
necessary  before  they  could  descend  to  the  trivialities 
of  sport  and  pleasure,  I  might  have  been  offended. 
As  it  was  I  carried  out  my  scheme  of  sustaining 
nerve  tone  with  silent  efficiency  and  a  certain 
measure  of  critical  amusement. 

Finally  I  rose,  begging  to  be  excused  on  the  ground 
that  my  presence  was  demanded  on  the  ice. 

"  Certainly,  certainly,"  said  the  King,  in  answer 
to  my  request,  "  Go,  and  success  attend  you  !  How 
have  you  been  doing  ?  " 

"  Very  well,  sire.  Every  one  regrets  that  you 
are  unable  to  take  part  in  the  competition." 

"  That  is  very  kind  of  every  one.  I  am  afraid 
our  pre-occupation  has  caused  you  a  very  dull 
meal." 

"  Not  at  all,  sire ;  I  merely  regret  that  I  am  unable 
to  be  of  any  use  to  you  in  your  deliberations." 


FROST   AND    FRIENDSHIP       293 

"  Your  work  is  done,  Saunders,  and  marvellously 
well  done,  too.  Happily  the  man  of  action  is  no 
longer   required." 

"  Merely  the  man  of  brains  !  " 

The  King  laughed  good  naturedly. 

"  I  should  be  sorry  to  exclude  you  from  that 
category,"  he  said.  "  But  what  we  are  dealing 
with  now  is  detail.  In  this  detail  we  want  the 
specially  trained  faculties  of  the  soldier,  the  detective, 
and  the  Sovereign.  The  first  two  roles  are  admirably 
filled,  as  you  know,  by  our  friends  here.  The  last 
is  indifferently  filled  by  myself,  but  unhappily  there 
is  no  substitute." 

"  Say  rather,  '  happily, '  sire.  With  your  per- 
mission I  go  to  uphold  the  honour  of  the  Brun- 
varad  on  the  curling  rink." 

On  arriving  once  more  on  the  scene  of  play  I 
discovered  that  rumours  and  reports  had  been 
multiplied  and  magnified  to  such  an  extent,  that 
it  was  believed  in  some  quarters  that  His  Majesty's 
absence  from  the  ranks  of  the  competitors  was 
due  to  a  dagger  wound  in  the  Royal  abdomen, 
in  others  that  that  tension  between  the  King  and 
Queen  had  culminated  in  an  attack  of  wife-beating 
of  unparalleled  ferocity.  To  such  and  similar  legends 
I  gave  the  lie  unqualified,  stating  that  I  had 
lunched  with  his  Majesty,  who  was  in  excellent 
health,  and  who  was  about  to  give  to  the  world  a 
true  account  of  the  mcidents  from  which  these 
wild  reports  had  originated.  More  I  refused  to 
say,  and  was  accordingly  somewhat  sniffed  at  as 
a  superior  person. 


294      FROST   AND    FRIENDSHIP 

Of  the  afternoon's  play  little  need  be  said,  except 
that  it  bore  a  striking  resemblance  to  the  morning's. 
Inwicks,  outwicks,  drawings  to  the  tee,  chippings  of 
the  winner,  were  feats  I  performed  with  astonishing 
regularity,  and  had  it  not  been  for  the  extraordinary 
interest  manifested  by  my  rivals,  and  the  conscious- 
ness that  Miss  Anchester's  grey  eyes  were  upon  me, 
I  should  have  been  bored  to  death  by  the  unfailing 
consistency  of  my  good  fortune.  As  it  was,  I 
achieved  a  score  which  remains  an  easy  record  at 
Weissheim  to  this  day. 

At  the  conclusion  of  play  I  received  the  con- 
gratulations of  the  curling  fraternity  with  becoming 
modesty,  and  the  commonplace  regret  that  we 
could  not  all  be  winners.  Then  I  turned  to  where 
Miss  Anchester  was  sitting  with  the  Royal  children, 
and  as  I  did  so,  a  great  sound  of  cheering  broke  on 
my  ears.  Instantly  it  occurred  to  me  that  the  news 
of  my  further  success  had  been  communicated  to 
the  good  Weissheimers,  and  that  the  double  winner 
of  the  Grimland  Derby  and  Caledonian  Medal  was 
about  to  receive  an  ovation  even  more  enthusiatic 
and  warm-hearted  than  that  which  had  been  accorded 
me  on  the  previous  afternoon.  I  approached  Miss 
Anchester  and  her  Royal  charges,  determined  at 
last  to  receive  her  congratulations,  and  wondering 
whether  they  would  be  expressed  in  the  coldest 
and  most  formal  terms,  or  whether  in  a  spirit  of 
ironical  exaggeration  such  as  she  had  employed  in 
toasting  the  winner  of  the  Grimland  Derby.  I 
recalled  with  a  smile  her  supercilious  comment 
after  my  first  essay  on  the  curling  rink,  how  she 


FROST   AND    FRIENDSHIP       295 

had  informed  me  that  with  practice  and  patience  I 
might  well  attain  to  the  position  of  a  "  Number  two," 
or  even  conceivably  a  "  Number  three,"  if  there  was 
a  dearth  of  good  players  on  the  ice.  Now  that  I 
had  won,  hands  down,  the  trophy  which  most  of  my 
opponents  would  have  given  ten  years  of  their 
enthusiastic  lives  to  caU  their  own,  I  determined  to 
remind  her  good  humouredly  of  her  words.  Louder 
and  nearer  grew  the  sounds  of  the  cheering,  and  I 
was  about  to  address  to  her  my  smiling  taunt  when 
suddenly,  and,  to  my  thinking,  somewhat  rudely,  she 
turned  away  in  the  direction  of  the  rousing  sounds. 
I  followed  her  gaze  and  a  moment  later  I  knew  that 
it  was  not  in  my  honour  that  the  frosty  air  was 
being  shaken  with  hoarse  cries.  At  the  head  of  a 
great  throng  stalked  the  tall  ponderous  figure  of 
the  King ;  his  head  was  bare,  his  brown  face  wreathed 
in  smiles,  and  following  him,  shouting,  crying, 
tossing  fur  caps  and  wooUen  berets  high  into  the 
air,  were  the  good  excitable  folks  of  Weissheim. 
Immediately  behind  him  and  at  the  head  of  the 
following  throng,  were  Genercd  Meyer  with  his 
plastered  face,  and  a  limping  officer  who  had  been 
one  of  our  rescue  party,  and  in  the  crowd  itself 
representatives  of  every  trade  or  profession  in  the 
town.  Soldiers,  wood-carvers,  publicans,  leather- 
workers,  masons  and  shoemakers  vied  with  each 
other  in  doing  vociferous  honour  to  their  old  King 
and  new  found  hero.  As  his  Majesty  passed  the 
Pariserhof  rinks,  the  curlers,  amongst  whom  the 
broad  facts  of  the  King's  danger  and  escape  were 
now  recognised,  took  up  the  roaring  tribute,  and 


296      FROST    AND    FRIENDSHIP 

joined  their  wild  curling  cries  to  the  deep- 
throated  applause. 

"  Long  live  King  Karl !  Vivat  Majestat !  Sehr 
gut  gespielt !  " 

Miss  Anchester,  a  gleam  of  excitement  in  her 
grey  eyes,  mounted  the  seat  she  had  been  occupying, 
and  flaunting  her  handkerchief  and  almost  dancing 
with  exhilaration,  raised  her  clear  tones  in  honour 
of  the  happy  Sovereign. 

My  trifling  humiliation  at  finding  that  I  was  not 
the  real  recipient  of  the  cheering  disappeared 
instantaneously  in  the  prevailing  atmosphere  of 
enthusiasm,  and  waving  my  cap  aloft  I  gave  vent 
to  a  particularly  forcible  "  Vivat  Majestat."  The 
Knig's  eyes  fell  on  me,  and  advancing  to  me  he 
shook  me  warmly  by  the  hand. 

"  How  did  you  get  on  at  the  competition  ?  "  he 
asked. 

"  I  won  it,  sire." 

"  Bravo  !  "  he  called  loudly.  "  My  friends,  Herr 
Saunders,  the  winner  of  the  Grimland  Derby,  has 
also  carried  off  the  Caledonian  Medal.  Three  cheers 
for  Herr  Saunders." 

The  bathos  of  the  situation  seemed  to  strike  the 
audience,  for  there  was  laughter  mingled  in  their 
cheering,  but  it  was  all  very  good-natured  and 
inspiring,  and  I  doffed  my  cap  repeatedly  in  acknow- 
ledgment. 

"  Not  only  that,"  pursued  the  King,  around 
whom  the  crowd  had  now  gathered  as  about  one 
of  whom  a  speech  was  expected.  "  It  was  Mr. 
Saunders  who  saved  my  life  last  night.     You  have 


FROST    AND    FRIENDSHIP       297 

read  my  official  proclamation  describing  how  a  friend 
escaping  from  the  toils  of  our  enemies  in  the  Marien- 
kastel,  tobogganed  at  night  without  rakes  down  the 
Kastel  run  in  order  to  anticipate  the  traitors  who 
had  already  started  on  their  dastardly  journey. 
That  was  Herr  Saunders  (cheers).  How  the  same 
friend  clambered  down  a  rainwater  pipe,  and  with 
the  utmost  difficulty  and  at  the  utmost  risk  suc- 
ceeded in  scrambling  into  the  Schweigenkammer  to 
be  beside  me  in  the  moment  of  peril.  That  was 
Herr  Saunders." 

There  was  no  mistaking  the  purport  of  those 
cheers  now,  and  as  I  stood  there  bare-headed,  facing 
that  shouting  crowd,  I  felt  the  same  thrill  of  perfect 
joyousness  as  when  six  years  before  I  had  just 
completed  my  half  century  in  the  'Varsity  Match. 
Applause  is  an  intoxicating  thing.  It  raises  one 
to  the  level  of  the  gods  ;  for  the  moment  one 
treads  the  clouds,  one's  head  is  in  the  stars,  the 
earth  becomes  a  puny  sphere  supremely  dominated 
by  the  imperial  ego.  The  cheers  of  the  excitable 
Weissheimers  mounted  to  my  brain,  and  the  genial 
plaudits  of  my  fellow  countrymen  acted  on  me 
like  strong  wine.  I  reeled,  figuratively,  with  the 
debauch  of  acclamation,  and  then  as  the  King 
passed  on  and  the  noise  of  the  multitude  grew  faint, 
my  pulses  slowed  and  the  depression  of  the  stale 
reveller  assailed  me.  I  had  lived,  I  had  tasted  the 
strongest  of  life's  wine,  and  I  must  henceforth 
drink  of  water.  The  re-action  was  too  acute,  too 
sudden  to  be  normal.  The  exhilaration  should 
have  lasted  longer,  died  slower  in  a  healthy  spirit,  and 


298      FROST   AND   FRIENDSHIP 

I  almost  groaned,  for  I  knew  that  my  spirit  was 
not  healthy,  but  sick  of  the  fever  that  men  call 
love.  I  looked  round,  and  of  the  throng  that  had 
been  shouting  themselves  hoarse  at  the  mention  of 
my  name  scarce  one  individual  remained.  The 
curlers,  each  disappointed  of  his  secret  expecta- 
tions, had  donned  their  greatcoats  and  were  wending 
their  way  back  towards  the  Pariserhof,  where  the 
delights  of  hot  chocolate  and  "  Bridge  "  awaited 
them.  The  noisy  Weissheimers  were  still  following 
their  tardily  appreciated  Sovereign,  and  would 
doubtless  make  a  patriotic  demonstration  before 
the  Brun-varad.  In  that  case  fresh  cheers  might 
await  me  did  I  so  choose,  for  I  had  but  to  appear  on 
the  balcony  of  some  window  for  the  excitable  throng 
to  scream  themselves  hoarse  at  the  sight.  In  my 
present  mood  nothing  would  have  been  more  dis- 
tasteful. Life  seemed  a  raw,  unsatisfying  thing, 
and  to  be  forced  to  smile  and  smirk  and  bow  to  a 
yelping  multitude  was  beyond  the  range  of  the 
endurable.  Vaguely  I  desired  Miss  Anchester's 
society,  but  she  had  gone  on  ahead  joining  herself 
to  the  crowd.  Perhaps  it  was  as  weU,  I  reflected, 
for  in  my  present  mood  her  usual  tone  of  calm 
superiority  and  chilling  reproof  might  have  led  to 
verbal  reprisals  considerably  less  courteous  than 
my  ordinary  tolerably  uncivil  retorts. 

An  idea  struck  me.  What  was  happening  at 
the  Marienkastel  ?  How  had  the  Princess  borne 
the  disastrous  news  of  her  bereavement  ?  My 
conscience  smote  me  for  not  having  turned  my 
thoughts  that  way  before.     Unwilling  to  return  to 


FROST    AND    FRIENDSHIP       299 

the  crowd-invested  Palace  I  determined  to  wander 
up  to  the  path  that  fringed  the  Kastel  run  as  far 
as  the  Princess's  home,  and  make  inquiries  as  to  her 
condition. 


CHAPTER    XXII 

AS  I  toiled  laboriously  up  the  steep  ascent  by 
the  Kastel  run  I  noted  the  familiar  landmarks 
of  the  course,  contrasting  the  rate  of  my  present 
progress  with  that  of  the  previous  night's  descent. 
Approaching  the  Marienkastel  I  noticed  with  sur- 
prise that  a  couple  of  soldiers  were  standing  by  the 
gate,  and  as  I  came  up  to  them  they  barred  my 
further  progress  by  crossing  their  rifles  in  front  of 
me.  I  had  no  particular  desire  to  enter  the  building, 
but  1  required  information, 

"  Is  the  Prinzessin  within  ?  "  I  demanded. 
"  Yes,  Excellency." 

"  And  no  one  is  permitted  to  enter  ?  " 
"  Not  without  a  permit.  Excellency." 
"  Is  any  one  else  here  ?  "  I  asked  after  a  pause. 
"The  Herr  Schneider  is  also  within." 
Herr  Schneider !    What  the  deuce  was  he  doing, 
I   wondered,  cind   knowing  his  sentiments  towards 
the  Princess  I  began  to  feel  uneasy. 

"  Kindly  inform  the  Herr  that  Herr  Saunders  is 
without  and  desires  an  entrance." 

The  man  hesitating,  I  backed  my  authoritative 
manner  with  a  five  Krone  piece.  The  result  was 
satisfactory,  and  a  minute  later  the  detective  himself 
emerged  from  the  castle  and  secured  my  admission. 

300 


FROST   AND    FRIENDSHIP       301 

His  broad  face  was  illuminated  by  an  expression 
of  joyous  excitement,  and  his  restless  eyes  were 
eloquent  of  profound  self-satisfaction. 

"  You  look  happy,"  I  could  not  help  remark- 
ing. 

He  put  his  hand  to  his  cravat  wherein  was  fixed 
a  large  and  rather  vulgar  diamond  pin. 

"  It  has  been  a  great  day,"  he  said.  "  Much  good 
fortune  has  come  already  my  way  but  the  best 
fortune  still  awaits  me." 

"  How  so  ?  " 

"  I  have  an  order  from  the  King,"  he  said,  patting 
his  breast  pocket,  "  empowering  me  to  arrest  the 
Prinzessin.  The  events  of  last  night  have  had  an 
extraordinarily  hardening  effect  on  his  Majesty's 
nature,  and  his  feelings  towards  women  are  especi- 
ally bitter.  Acting  on  my  advice,  he  has  not  only 
ordered  the  Princess's  arrest,  but  so  worded  the 
order  that  I  should  be  justified  in  taking  extreme 
measures  in  the  event  of  any  attempt  at  escape  or 
resistance  on  her  part." 

"  A  most  improbable  contingency,"  I  remarked. 

"  I  hope  so,"  said  my  companion,  and  his  shifty 
eyes  finally  shot  into  their  respective  corners  and 
looked  wickedly  cunning.  We  were  in  the  building 
now,  and  I  noticed  that  the  floral  decorations  of  the 
previous  evening  were  still  left  untouched,  and,  in 
view  of  what  had  befallen  the  House,  their  festive  air 
was  grimly  inappropriate. 

"  Have  you  notified  to  the  Princess  that  she  is 
under  arrest  ?  "  I  demanded. 

"I  have.    She  is  now  considering  my  proposal." 


302       FROST    AND    FRIENDSHIP 

"  Your  proposal  ?  " 

"  Precisely.  My  proposal  of  marriage  If  she 
consents  to  be  my  wife,  I  am  confident  that  my 
influence  with  his  Majesty  can  procure  her  pardon 
and  release.  If  she  refuses,"  here  he  brought  out 
a  revolver  and  tapped  it  against  the  palm  of  his 
fleshy  hand.  "  Well,  she  will  have  made  a  most 
determined  effort  to  escape." 

By  great  good  fortune  I  succeeded  in  choking  down 
the  exclamation  of  disgust  that  rose  to  my  lips. 
Such  villainy  as  this  was  fitly  met  neither  by  rebuke 
nor  violence,  but  by  guile. 

"  You  are  a  genius,"  I  said  in  a  forced  voice  of 
admiration. 

The  toadlike  features  lighted  up  with  manifest 
pleasure  at  the  compliment. 

"  And  yet  you  once  thought  me  ambitious  !  "  he 
said.  "  So  I  was,  but  not  over-ambitious.  At 
length  I  am  in  a  winning  position,  and  I  run  no  risks. 
I  shall  not  be  content  merely  with  an  ordinary  pro- 
mise to  marry  me,  but  she  must  swear  to  do  so  on 
her  mother's  soul,  and  the  souls  of  her  dead  father 
and  brother." 

The  man  made  me  feel  physically  sick. 

"  A  most  business-like  arrangement,"  I  said 
coolly.     "  Where  is  she  ?  " 

"  In  the  little  Rothe  Saal  making  up  her  mind." 

"  May  I  go  and  see  her  ?  Perhaps  I  can  help  her 
make  it  up." 

"  By  all  means,"  he  said,  after  a  moment's  hesita- 
tion. '*  I  feel  sure  your  splendid  worldly  wisdom 
will  convince  her  that  the  disadvantages  of  marry- 


FROST    AND   FRIENDSHIP      303 

ing  into  the  middle  classes  axe  less  than  those  of  a 
bullet  through  the  spinal  cord." 

Not  trusting  myself  to  answer  him,  I  advanced 
to  the  door  of  the  Rothe-saal,  an  apartment  on  the 
ground  floor  to  the  right  of  the  ball-room.  I  had 
been  in  the  room  before,  and  it  was  a  fair-sized 
chamber  with  long  red  panels  in  rococo  framing, 
and  contained  portraits  of  the  late  Grand  Duke  and 
his  exceedingly  handsome  Duchess.  The  windows 
which  opened  down  to  the  ground  gave  on  to  the 
garden,  and  looking  out  one  could  see  the  commence- 
ment of  the  Kastel  run  some  hundred  yards  away. 
In  the  room  I  found  the  Princess.  To  my  surprise 
she  was  dressed  in  toboganning  costume,  but  her 
young  face  bore  the  sad  tokens  of  mourning  more 
legibly  than  any  scheme  of  attire  could  possibly  have 
done.  The  change  indeed,  from  her  normal  appear- 
ances, was  pathetic  in  the  extreme.  The  careless 
laughter,  the  heedless  joy  in  life,  no  longer  shone  in 
her  dark-rimmed  eyes  or  showed  in  her  pale  features. 
Like  Herr  Bomcke,  trouble  had  robbed  her  of  her 
conspicious  attributes,  only  in  her  case  the  residue 
was  more  appreciable  ;  joy,  indeed  was  killed,  viva- 
city was  crushed,  but  there  remained  pride  and  the 
unconquerable  courage  of  the  Schattenbergs.  Her 
eyes  met  mine  fearlessly,  but  the  utter  hopelessness 
of  their  expression  moved  me  deeply. 

"  I  am  sorry  to  intrude  upon  your  sorrow,''  I 
began,  "  neither  will  I  weary  you  with  expres- 
sions of  sympathy,  though  I  would  ask  you  to  believe 
that  I  feel  deeply  for  you.  I  merely  come  here  with 
the  intention  of  serving  you." 


304      FROST   AND    FRIENDSHIP 

"  You  and  I  have  been  playing  a  stern  game," 
she  said  softly,  "  and  now  that  you  have  won  all 
along  the  line  I  am  too  good  a  sportswoman  not  to 
congratulate  you  on  your  courage  and  resourceful- 
ness. Nevertheless,  it  is  too  much  to  expect  me  to 
accept  your  help." 

"  Cannot  the  nobility  which  congratulates  the 
victor,  bring  itself  also  to  accept  his  good  ser- 
vices ?  " 

She  shook  her  head  mournfully. 

"  For  you  personally,"  she  said,  "  I  have  nothing 
but  liking  and  respect .  Your  conduct  last  night,  which 
I  have  learned  of  from  Herr  Schneider's  lips,  was  a 
splendid  mixture  of  audacity  and  resource.  The 
trick  you  played  on  me  I  willingly  forgive,  for  my 
own  duplicity  fully  warranted  it,  but  I  cannot  forget 
that  but  for  you  my  father  and  brother  would  be 
alive  to-day." 

"  And  those  who  are  alive  to-day  would  be  even 
as  they  are  now.  I  merely  did  my  duty,  as  you  did 
yours,  but  Fate  set  us  on  opposite  sides.  And  yet 
of  the  actual  blood  of  your  family  I  am  guiltless. 
Several  times  last  night  I  was  fired  upon,  but  only 
once  did  I  pull  the  trigger  of  my  revolver,  and  then 
it  was  at  a  lantern  I  aimed,  though  I  had  your  brother 
at  my  mercy." 

"Is  that  so  ?  "  she  asked  and  her  eyes  seemed  to 
wait  eagerly  for  the  affirmative  that  followed. 

"  Then  I  am  very  glad,"  she  said,  and  the  first 
tinge  of  colour  that  came  into  her  cheeks  did  me 
good  to  see. 

"  Now,"  I  said,  "  will  you  accept  my  help  ?  " 


{  FROST   AND    FRIENDSHIP      305 

"  I  am  under  arrest,  I  know,"  she  said,  "  but  I  do 
not  mind." 

"  Do  you  value  your  life  ?  " 

For  answer  she  made  a  gesture  indicating  the 
nature  of  her  garb. 

"  In  my  father's  lifetime,"  she  said,  "  I  was 
never  permitted  to  venture  on  the  Kastel  run. 
To-day  I  have  descended  it  twice.  On  both  occa- 
sions I  tried  to  shoot  over  David,  but  on  both  occa- 
sions instinct  proved  stronger  than  determination  ; 
I  raked  hard  and  got  round  the  corner  safely." 

"All  of  which  proves  that  life  is  a  burden  which 
it  is  very  difficult  for  us  to  set  down." 

"  And  yet,"  she  said  wearily,  "  I  would  set  it 
down  very  willingly." 

"  Doubtless,"  I  replied.  "  Nor  am  I  one  who 
holds  that  self-destruction  is  necessarily  a  crime. 
Only  the  number  of  cases  where  it  is  not  so  are  ex- 
ceedingly small — and  yours  is  not  among  them." 

"  How  do  you  mean  ?  " 

"  I  mean  that  you  cannot  destroy  yourself  without 
mutilating  the  hearts  of  others.  There  is  some  one 
living  to  whom  your  decease  would  be  a  terrible — an 
almost  fatal  blow." 

She  lowered  her  eyes. 

"  Whom  do  you  mean  ?  "  she  asked  almost  in- 
audibly. 

"  I  mean  little  Stephan." 

"  Little  Stephan  !  "  she  passed  her  hand  across 
her  eyes.  "  Assuredly  grief  is  a  very  selfish  thing," 
she  cried,  "  for  in  the  bitterness  of  my  trouble  I  had 
almost  forgotten  him." 

U 


3o6      FROST   AND    FRIENDSHIP 

"  Therefore,"  I  continued  softly,  "  you  see  it  is 
your  duty  to  live,  and  I  am  here  to  help  you  carry 
out  that  duty." 

"  You  are  right,"  she  replied,  "  but  my  life  is  not 
in  danger." 

"  Pardon  me,"  I  said,  "  Herr  Schneider  is  in  the 
house." 

"  I  know,  it  was  he  who  told  me  I  was  under 
arrest." 

"  Is  that  all  he  told  you  ?  " 

"  No,"  she  cried  indignantly,  "  that  is  not  all. 
He  had  the  insolence  to  demand  my  hand  in  mar- 
riage." 

"  I  need  not  ask  your  reply,  but  did  he  not  sup- 
port his  suit  with  certain  material  consideration  ?  " 

"  He  promised  me  he  could  procure  my  instant 
release  in  the  event  of  my  accepting  him." 

"  And  in  the  event  of  your  not  accepting  him  ?  " 

"  I  do  not  know.  When  I  refused  him  he  told 
me  he  could  not  accept '  No  '  for  an  answer,  and  that 
in  half-an-hour  he  would  see  me  again,  and,  if  ne- 
cessary, bring  further  arguments  to  bear  on  me." 

"  And  you  have  no  suspicion  what  those  argu- 
ments are  ?  " 

"  None." 

"  So  !  He  reserves  his  brutality  in  the  hope  that 
it  may  not  be  necessary  to  bring  it  to  light.  Your 
Highness,  the  argument  he  spoke  of  was  the  same 
one  that  your  brother  employed  last  night  to  induce 
me  to  take  a  seat  in  your  boudoir." 

She  started  in  absolute  astonishment,  but  not,  I 
know,  in  fear. 


FROST    AND    FRIENDSHIP       307 

"  He  would  threaten  me  !  " 

"  He  would  not  stop  at  threats." 

"  You  mean *' 

"  I  mean  that  he  is  a  lunatic,  and  a  thoroughly 
dangerous  one.  He  will  insist  on  your  promising 
to  be  his  wife  ;  he  will  bind  you  by  the  most  terrible 
oaths,  and  if  you  defy  him, he  is  capable  of  anything." 

"  Then  your  advice  ?  " 

"  There  is  only  one  course  practicable  and  that  is 
to  escape.  I  am  a  strong  man  and  I  value  my  life 
no  higher  than  you  do  yours.  But  I  am  unarmed  ; 
I  have  not  even  with  me  the  knife  you  presented 
to  me  at  Mrs.  Van  Troeber's  ball.  Moreover 
Schneider  is  backed  by  the  force  of  law  and  has  a 
couple  of  soldiers  at  his  disposal.  To  resist  his  in- 
famy by  force  is  to  play  his  game  for  him.  We 
must  trust  rather  to  our  wits." 

"  In  that  case,"  she  said  simply,  "  I  thank  God 
that  I  have  you  at  my  side.  Your  doings  of  last 
night  fill  me  with  amazement." 

"  It  is  the  tactics  of  last  night  we  must  repeat," 
I  said.  "  Herr  Schneider,  for  a  clever  man,  has 
made  two  very  foolish  blunders.  In  the  first  place 
he  thinks  I  am  supporting  his  odious  policy  ;  in 
the  second  he  has  left  open  to  you  a  way  of  retreat." 

*'  A  way  of  retreat  ?  " 

"  What  is  there  to  stop  you  stepping  out  of  this 
window,  getting  your  toboggan,  and  making  your 
third  descent  oftheKastel  run.  Arrived  at  Weiss- 
heim,  you  can  either  put  yourself  under  the  King's 
protection  or  hire  a  sleigh  and  push  on  to  the  fron- 
tier." 


3o8      FROST   AND    FRIENDSHIP 

"  I  will  not  throw  myself  on  the  King's  mercy." 

"  Then  strike  out  for  the  Austrian  frontier.  The 
telegraph  wires  were  cut  last  night,  and  in  all  pro- 
bability are  still  unmended." 

"  And  what  about  Stephan  ?  " 

"  His  Royal  Highness  Prince  Stephan  von  Schat- 
tenberg  is  not  exposed  to  the  same  dangers  as  your- 
self. My  influence  with  the  King  is  very  consider- 
able, and  anything  I  can  do  for  your  brother's  present 
protection  and  future  welfare  will  be  done." 

She  held  out  her  hand  to  me,  and  I  noticed  that 
her  eyes  were  moist  with  gathering  tears.  I  dreaded 
a  breakdown,  for  if  her  purpose  failed  her  it  meant  a 
desperate  and  hopelessly  uneven  struggle  with  her 
persecutor. 

I  took  her  hand. 

"  Be  strong,"  I  said  gently.  "  The  Schattenbergs 
are  ever  at  their  best  in  the  danger  hour." 

She  tried  to  speak — words  of  gratitude  I  feel  sure — 
but  her  utterance  was  choked  and  she  turned  away 
in  silence  and  opened  the  long  French  window. 

"God  be  with  you — Highness,"  I  murmured, but 
she  did  not  look  round. 

I  watched  her  go  cis  far  as  the  toboggan  store- 
room, and  then  hastily  made  up  my  mind  to  make  a 
detour  through  the  deep  snow  rather  than  to  retrace 
my  steps  through  the  Castle  hall  where  Herr 
Schneider  was  biding  his  time  with  a  revolver  in 
his  breast-pocket.  I  looked  upon  the  man  as  barely 
sane,  and  when  he  discovered  the  part  I  had  played 
in  balking  his  preposterous  aspirations,  his  conse- 
quent outburst  of  wrath  would  in  all  probability 


FROST    AND    FRIENDSHIP      309 

take  a  homicidal  form.  Had  I  been  wearing  rakes 
I  would  have  followed  the  Princess,  at  a  due  interval, 
down  the  Kastel  run,  but  I  was  unwilling  to  tempt 
Providence  by  making  a  second  rakeless  descent  of 
that  difficult  course.  I  wandered  out  into  the  garden 
as  far  as  the  track,  and  was  about  to  cross  it  when  a 
slight  scraping  sound  told  me  that  some  one  was 
coming  down.  It  was  the  Princess,  and  she  was 
steering  as  straight  and  steady  a  course  as  the  most 
critical  tobogganner  could  desire.  She  raised  her 
eyes  momentarily  to  me  as  she  passed,  and  raising 
my  cap  I  breathed  a  heart-felt  message  of  "  good 
luck." 

A  second  later  my  eyes  fell  on  Schneider  and  his 
two  myrmidons.  I  had  looked  to  see  wrath  and  dis- 
appointment on  his  mobile  coimtenance,  but  his 
present  expression  was  rather  one  of  evil  triumph, 
and  he  shook  his  head  at  me  as  if  to  point  the  folly 
of  my  attempting  to  thwart  his  well-planned  scheme. 
Raising  a  whistle  to  his  lips  he  blew  a  loud  shrill  call. 
Instantaneously  a  horse  sleigh  emerged  from  the 
pine  woods  below  us  and  proceeded  along  the  path 
which  crosses  the  toboggan  run  just  above  the  Devil's 
elbow.  The  man's  extraordinary  villainy  was  mani- 
fest in  an  instant.  Cleverer  and  baser  even  than 
I  had  imagined,  he  had  foreseen  the  likelihood  of 
the  Princess  attempting  this  particular  form  of 
escape,  but  instead  of  rendering  her  attempt  im- 
possible, he  preferred  to  let  her  destroy  herself  in 
a  fruitless  bid  for  freedom.  Foreseeing  every  detail 
with  fiendish  perspicuity^  he  had  retained  a  sleigh 
at  the  upper-crossing  with  orders  to  draw  across  the 


310      FROST   AND    FRIENDSHIP 

track  on  the  preconcerted  sounding  of  a  whistle. 
The  crime  passionel  is  ever  hard  for  ordinary 
mortals  to  understand,  but  the  morbid  passion  that 
can  accept  with  equal  delight  the  possession  or  de- 
tniction  of  its  object  is  far  beyond  a  normal  compre- 
hension. To  think  was  to  stand  powerless  and 
witness  an  appalling  tragedy,  and  fortunately  I  acted 
by  inspiration  alone.  Wresting  a  rifle  from  the  hand 
of  one  of  the  two  soldiers,  I  knelt  in  the  snow  and 
fired  at  the  advancing  horse.  With  a  feeling  of  in- 
expressible thankfulness,  I  saw  that  the  shot  had 
taken  effect.  The  beast  plunged  violently  and  then 
fell  struggling  and  kicking  to  the  ground.  The 
sleigh  was  stopped,  and  the  Princess  passed  safely  on 
her  way  to  Weissheim. 

I  turned  to  Herr  Schneider  with  a  smile  of  triumph, 
but  as  my  eyes  lighted  upon  his  countenance  the 
smile  froze  upon  my  lips.  Never  have  I  seen  human 
features  imprinted  with  such  a  look  of  infinite 
and  diabolical  hatred.  It  was  not  the  face  of  a 
man  I  was  gazing  on  but  the  face  of  a  demon.  His 
eyes  rolled,  his  features  twitched,  his  whole  frame 
shook  and  quivered  with  the  intensity  of  his  un- 
bridled maUce.  Then  he  whipped  out  his  revolver 
and  fired  at  me  ;  but  his  hand  was  shaking  as  if  with 
palsy,  and  the  bullet  went  heaven  knows  where. 
Again  he  fired,  and  yet  again  a  third  time,  but  in  spite 
of  our  ridiculous  proximity  I  remained  untouched. 
Then  he  cast  down  his  weapon  with  a  nameless  oath 
and  rushed  furiously  towards  the  commencement 
of  the  Kastel  rim. 

The  soldier,  whose  rifle  I  had  taken,  tapped  the 


FROST    AND    FRIENDSHIP       311 

weapon  and  pointed  meaningly  to  the  retreating 
figure.  I  shook  my  head.  Herr  Schneider's  scheme 
was  patent  now,  and  I  had  no  intention  of  opposing 
it.  The  Princess  had  escaped  down  the  Kastelrun, 
and  he  would  pursue  her  by  the  same  road.  As  he 
was  unprovided  with  rakes  his  chances  of  negotiating 
David  (if  indeed  he  got  so  far)  were  small  in  the 
extreme,  and  the  long  death-terminated  plunge  over 
the  precipice  seemed  his  fore-shadowed  end.  I 
watched  him  take  a  toboggan  from  the  store-room, 
and  dragging  it  to  the  starting  point,  throw  himself 
on  it  with  the  reckless  courage  of  his  distorted  pas- 
sion. It  would  have  been  easy  for  me  to  brain  him 
with  the  butt  end  of  the  rifle  as  he  swept  past  us,  and 
had  I  deemed  his  chances  of  overtaking  the  Princess 
appreciable,  I  would  have  done  so  unhesitatingly. 
As  it  was  I  refrained  from  doing  violence  to  my  feel- 
ings, and  in  the  light  of  what  was  to  happen  lam 
glad.  Scarcely  had  the  detective  flashed  by  when 
the  wounded  horse  scrambled  to  its  feet,  and,  in  spite 
of  its  driver's  efforts,  dragged  the  sleigh  across  the  ice- 
run  and  blocked  the  track.  I  saw  Schneider  swerve 
in  his  course  and  bump  first  into  one  bank  and  then 
into  the  other  :  but  there  was  no  escape  from  the 
adamantine  confinement  of  that  downward  track. 
There  was  a  moment  of  fascinated  horror,  and  then 
one  of  the  soliders  laughed.  Herr  Schneider's 
shattered  body  was  lying  lifeless  in  the  snow. 


CHAPTER    XXIII 

I  BADE  the  sleigh-driver  take  back  Herr  Schnei- 
der's dead  body  to  the  Brun-varad,  and  acting 
on  my  suggestion  the  two  soldiers  accompanied  the 
conveyance.  Then  solitary  and  the  prey  to  strange 
thoughts  I  walked  down  the  snow  path  alongside 
that  fatal  run.  At  the  scene  of  the  catastrophe  I 
stopped,  but  save  for  a  streak  of  frozen  blood  the 
ice  bore  no  token  of  the  shattering  catastrophe 
that  had  divorced  the  detective's  unhealthy  soul 
from  his  unprepossessing  body. 

Well,  it  would  have  been  idle  to  pretend  that  I 
regretted  his  decease,  and  I  prayed  that  the  splen- 
did-hearted little  Princess  might  win  her  way  to  free- 
dom, and  ultimately,  to  consolation  and  happiness. 

Never,  when  I  set  out  from  England  had  I 
dreamed  of  the  possibility  of  such  events  as  I  had 
just  participated  in,  and  were  it  not  for  one  thing,  I 
should  have  faced  the  prospect  of  returning  to  my 
native  country  with  the  proud  consciousness  of 
having  not  merely  moved  in  events  of  historical 
importance,  but  of  having  done  my  duty  unflinchingly 
and  with  conspicuous  success.  Unfortimately,  there 
was  that  in  my  heart  and  mind  which  battled  down 
the  proud  thoughts  of  self-congratulation  and  turned 
my  gladness  into  a  dull  pain.    Had  I  been  heart- 


FROST    AND    FRIENDSHIP       313 

whole  I  should  have  been  comparatively  happy. 
As  it  was,  I  had  looked  through  the  gates  of  the  mind 
into  a  region  of  happiness  greater  than  I  had  ever 
before  conceived  of.  The  doors  were  shut,  but  the 
memory  remained  and  the  brightness  of  the  vision 
turned  the  routine  of  my  ordinary  life  into  a  dreary 
sunless  journey.  And  yet,  I  could  say  of  myself  as  I 
had  once  said  of  the  infatuated  Fraulein  von  Helder, 
it  was  better  even  to  dream  one's  happiness  than  to 
miss  it  altogether.  Should  I  ever  revisit  Weissheim, 
I  wondered  ;  would  its  beauties  and  its  memories  call 
me  out  again  as  a  sweet  song  claims  irresistibly  a 
second  hearing  ;  or  should  I  henceforth  shun  it  as 
a  place  of  vague  unrest,  of  bloody  troubles  and  fierce 
unsatisfied  aspirations.  And  lest  the  latter  fate 
should  be  the  true  one  I  took  what  might  be  my  last 
look  from  that  high  point  of  vantage.  The  valley 
beneath  me  was  filled  with  a  white  mist,  and  over- 
head the  usually  clear  sky  was  fuU  of  heavy  purple 
clouds.  In  the  west  the  dying  sun  was  setting  in 
a  gorgeous  panoply  of  red  and  gold,  and  as  I  looked 
at  the  stormy  magnificence  of  the  lurid  heavens  I 
contrasted  their  present  aspect  with  their  normal 
one  of  cool,  clear  brilliancy.  "  They  do  not  remind 
one  of  Miss  Anchester  to-night,"  I  said  to  myself. 
**  There  is  passion  there,  passion  and  tumultuous 
emotions  and  a  burning  recklessness  that  knows  no 
mastery."  And  even  as  when  I  had  formerly  made 
my  comparison,  so  now  that  I  had  made  my  contrast, 
the  object  of  my  thoughts  was  suddenly  brought 
before  me. 

Breasting  the  slope  from  the  direction  of  Weiss- 


314      FROST    AND    FRIENDSHIP 

heim,  wearing  the  same  white  beret  and  the  same 
bhie-grey  cloak  as  she  had  worn  on  the  day  I 
made  my  ill-fated  proposal,  was  the  Royal 
Governess.  I  stood  aside  in  the  snow  to  let  her 
pass,  and  took  off  my  cap. 

"  Are  you  from  the  Marienkastel  ?  "  she  asked. 

"  Yes ;    and  you  I  suppose  are  going  there  ?  " 

"  Yes.    An  order  has  been  issued  for  the  Prin- 
cess's arrest.     I  have  a  later  order  from  his  Majesty 
rescinding  it." 

"  You  are  too  late,"  I  said. 

"  Why  ?  Has  she  been  already  arrested  ?  If 
so,  it  does  not  much  matter." 

"  She  has  escaped." 

"Escaped!    How?" 

"  Down  the  Kastel  nm." 

"You  saw  her  ?  " 

"  I  helped  her." 

Miss  Anchester  opened  her  eyes  in  amazement, 
and  a  distinct  look  of  admiration  crept  into  them. 
"  Was  that  not  rather  rash  ?  "  she  asked  at  length. 

"  Perhaps  :  but  the  circumstances  did  not  admit 
of  excessive  caution." 

"  Explain  please." 

"  Herr  Schneider  bore  the  order  of  arrest,  which 
also  gave  him  authority  to  fire  on  the  prisoner  should 
she  attempt  to  resist.  Armed  with  this  he  made  the 
Princess  a  proposal  of  marriage,  telling  me  con- 
fidentially that  he  was  prepared  to  overcome  her 
disinclinations  by  force.  Had  she  persisted  in  re- 
fusing him  he  would  have  murdered  her." 

My  companion  shuddered.  ^ 


FROST   AND    FRIENDSHIP       315 

"  How  horrible,"  she  said  in  a  low  voice,  "  and 
yet  I  doubt  if  he  would  have  gone  beyond  mere  threat. 
That  would  have  been  bad  enough,  but  Herr  Schnei- 
der is  not  a  murderer." 

"  I  have  irrefutable  proof  to  the  contrary,"  I 
retorted  calmly.  "  International  detectives  are  not 
altogether  fools  though  their  villainy  may  be  absolute, 
and  our  friend  had  foreseen  the  possibility  of  his 
prey  escaping  down  the  Kastel  run.  Accordingly 
he  stationed  a  horse-sleigh  at  the  upper  crossing, 
and  when  the  Princess  commenced  her  downward 
course,  the  coachman,  according  to  a  pre-arranged 
signal  proceeded  to  drive  his  conveyance  across  the 
track." 

"  Stop  !  "  Miss  Anchester  put  her  hand  in  front 
of  her  eyes  as  though  the  vision  pained  her.  I 
had  never  seen  her  display  so  much  emotion,  and 
hastened   to   relieve   her   feelings. 

"  It  was  aU  right,"  I  said.  "  I  managed  to  borrow 
one  of  the  soldier's  rifles  and  shoot  the  horse  before 
he  could  reach  the  crossing." 

"  How  splendid  of  you !  "  Her  face  was  bright 
again  now  with  the  glow  of  a  genuine  enthusiasm. 
"  And  was  not  Herr  Schneider  angry  ?  "  and  she 
laughed  the  excited  laugh  of  relieved  tension. 

"  So  angry,"  I  rephed,  "  that  he  missed  me  three 
times  with  his  revolver  at  a  distance  of  about  five 
paces." 

"  He  fired  at  you — three  times  ?  " 

"  Yes,  and  if  his  temper  had  been  slightly  more 
under  control  I  should  have  been  as  dead  as  he  is 
now." 


3i6      FROST   AND    FRIENDSHIP 

"He   is   dead — you   killed  him  ?  " 

"  He  killed  himself.  He  mounted  a  toboggan 
and  pursued  the  Princess.  By  that  time  the  wounded 
horse  had  succeeded  in  drawing  the  sleigh  athwart 
the  track.  They  are  taking  the  shattered  body  to 
the  Brim-varad." 

Again  my  companion  shuddered,  and  covered 
her  face  with  her  hands. 

"  I  am  sorry  for  the  Fraulein  von  Helder,"  she 
said,  after  a  considerable  interval.  "  It  will  break 
her  heart." 

"  I  agree  with  you  that  it  will  break  her  heart, 
but  I  am  not  sorry  for  her.  There  are  various  ways 
of  having  one's  heart  broken,  and  I  am  inclined  to 
think  that  that  way  was  the  most  merciful." 

There  was  another  pause. 

"  Mr.  Saunders." 

"  Yes." 

"  I  have  often  rebuked  you  and  laughed  at 
you  for  being  conceited.  I  will  never  do  so 
again." 

"  I  shall  miss  your  badinage." 

"  Possibly,  but  I  shall  have  no  heart  to  indulge  in 
it  any  more.  A  man  who  acted  as  you  did  last  night, 
and  have  done  to-day,  ougfU  to  have  a  high  opinion  of 
himself.  I  respected  you  immensely  for  having 
risked  your  life  so  splendidly  last  night  to  serve 
a  man.  To-day  you  have  done  as  much  for  a  woman, 
and  the  romance  is  greater." 

"  Like  all  conceited  people,"  I  replied,  "  I  hke 
praise,  but  your  approval  would  make  me  proud 
were  I  the  most  diffident  of  men." 


FROST   AND    FRIENDSHIP      317 

"  Where  has  the  Princess  gone  ? "  she  asked 
abruptly. 

"  I  suggested  that  she  should  make  for  the  Aus- 
trian frontier." 

"  And  you  will  follow  her  ?  " 

"  Heaven  forbid !  She  has  been  persecuted 
enough." 

"  But  you  are  not  Herr  Schneider." 

"  Heaven  be  thanked !  Still  I  am  a  bachelor 
and  she  a  maid.  The  proprieties  must  be  respected 
even  in  exile." 

"  But  surely  if  you  love  her " 

"  Love  her,"  I  interrupted  :  "  I  do  not  love  her. 
I  have  a  respectful  regard  for  her  :  so  deep  a  res- 
pect, so  strong  a  regard,  that  my  heart  bleeds  for 
the  brave  little  woman — but  that  is  not  love.  More- 
over I  am  neither  a  Graf,  a  von,  nor  even  a  Lieuten- 
ant, and  the  Schattenbergs  do  not  mate  with  com- 
moners. You  should  have  seen  her  indignation  at 
Schneider's  proposal." 

"  But  why  compare  yourself  with  him  ?  " 

"  Why  not  ?  An  international  detective  is  at 
least  the  social  equal  of  a  successful  linen-draper." 

"  But   if  the   Princess   loves   you " 

"  The  '  if  '  is  the  commencement  of  a  preposterous 
supposition." 

"  It  is  not,"  declared  my  companion  emphati- 
cally.    "I,  her  friend,  say  it  is  not." 

I  shook  my  head. 

"  I  assure  you  that  she  loves  you,"  persisted  Miss 
Anchester  with  convincing  earnestness. 

"  I  hope  and  pray  not,"   I  replied,  "  for  I  am 


3i8      FROST   AND    FRIENDSHIP 

incapable  of  returning  her  sentiments,  and  although 
my  affection  for  her  is  so  great  that  in  a  sense  it  may 
be  called  love,  it  is  not  love  in  the  most  exalted  mean- 
ing of  the  word." 

"  How  do  you  know  ?  " 

For  answer  I  pointed  at  the  amazing  glory  of  the 
heavens.  "  Is  not  that  sunset  more  beautiful  than 
the  ordinary  Weissheim  sunset  ?  "  I  asked.  "  Even 
so  does  love  outshine  friendship." 

Again  she  asked  me. 

*'  How  do  you  know  ?  "  and  her  voice  shook  a 
little. 

"  I  know  because  I  have  seen  both,  and  though 
the  greater  glory  was  only  vouchsafed  me  in  a  dream, 
its  beauty  was  such  that  it  has  spoilt  my  life." 

"  I  do  not  understand." 

"  You  do  not  understand,"  I  replied,  "  because 
you  have  nothing  in  common  with  the  passionate 
majesty  of  to-night's  sky.  And  yet  once  when  I 
had  had  an  accident  tobogganning,  and  my  senses 
were  just  shaking  off  the  dulness  of  insensibility,  I 
seemed  to  read  on  your  features  as  you  bent  over  me 
a  look  that  had  more  in  it  than  the  calm  icy  loveli- 
ness of  our  normal  sunsets.  Forgive  me  if  I  am 
troublesome,  but  I  have  suffered  too  much  to  mind 
making  myself  ridiculous." 

"  You  still ?  "  her  voice  broke  in  a  sob.     I 

gazed  at  her  face  and  for  a  second  my  wits  reeled 
with  astonishment.  Then  surprise  gave  way  to  a 
great  burst  of  hope,  and  hope  in  turn  to  a  triumphant 
certainty,  for  I  read  in  those  grey  tear-dimmed  eyes 
what  I  had  believed  could  never  be  written  there, 


FROST    AND    FRIENDSHIP       319 

the  look  they  had  seemed  to  wear  as  she  bent  over 
my  prostrate  form  by  the  toboggan  run — the  look  of 
a  loving  woman.  A  second  later  she  was  in  my  arms 
sobbing  and  laughing,  and  I  knew  that  life  was  a  glory 
and  not  a  curse. 

"  You've — conquered  me,"  she  murmured,  "  and 
I'm  so — proud." 

"  And  happy  ?  " 

"  Absolutely." 

He  ^i  Us  Ht  ^It 

"  By  the  way,"  I  asked,  as  we  retraced  our 
steps  towards  the  Brun-varad,  "  you  said  this  morn- 
ing that  you  were  very  angry  with  me.  What  was 
that  about  ?  " 

She  laughed  gaily. 

"  When  you  made  your  wonderful  descent  of  the 
Kastel  run  last  night,  the  '  contacts '  were  set  and 
your  '  time '  was  registered  automatically.  You 
completed  the  course  in  two  minutes  and  twenty- 
eight  seconds,  cutting  my  record  by  a  second  and  a 
quarter." 

I  whistled. 

"  No  wonder  you  were  cross  !  "  I  said. 

"  I  was  very  annoyed  ;  but  I  am  so  no  longer — 
merely  very  proud." 

My  dear  Robert, — The  Blackwoods  are  giving  a 
dance  at  the  Empress  Rooms  on  March  2 ;  I  hope 
you  will  be  back  in  time  for  it.  Agatha  is  looking 
charming " 

So  wrote  my  dear  scheming  parent  in  a  letter  which 


320      FROST   AND    FRIENDSHIP 

I  found  waiting  for  me  on  my  sitting-room  table. 
I  replied  as  follows  : — 

**  Dearest  Mother, — I  shall  make  a  point  of 
returning  home  for  the  Blackwood's  ball.  I  am 
delighted  to  hear  that  Agatha  looks  so  charming.  Miss 
Anchester  is  also  looking  very  charming,  and  what 
is  more  important  has  promised  to  be  my  wife. 
It  appears  we  both  fell  in  love  with  each  other  at  first 
sight,  which,  considering  my  fianc6e  is  as  discrim- 
inating as  she  is  charming  is  not  to  be  wondered  at. 
King  Karl  has  presented  her  with  a  wonderful  pearl 
necklace  and  me  with  the  Second  Class  Order 
of  the  Black  Ostrich  set  in  brilliants,  all  on  the 
condition  that  we  spend  our  honeymoon  at  the 
Brun-varad. 

"Your  loving  and  dutiful  son, 
"  Robert. 

"  P.S.  For  better  or  worse  (probably  the  latter)  I 
shall  take  over  the  management  of  the  firm  of  James 
Saunders  and  Son  on  my  return." 


THE   END 


Butler  &  Tanner,  The  Selwood  Printing  Works,  Frome,  and  LunUon. 


UGSB  LIBRARY 


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UC  SOUTHERN  REGIONAL  LIBRARY  FACILITY 


A     000  614  001     6 


